You cannot overstate, I don't think, the impact of a show like 'Glee' on a generation.
I feel really fortunate and grateful that not only do I get to do what I love, but I get to do it and serve a conversation that I feel is necessary culturally. The fact that I get to bring those two passions together is amazing to me - that I get to use my art in order to inform my activism and vice versa!
If you were to turn on the TV in 1986, '87, you wouldn't see anybody having, I guess, a low-to-middle-income person of color experience. And you definitely wouldn't have a young LGBT person or their story told. The experience of being invisible in our culture has ramifications that I don't think any of us can really understand.
When you're 14, 15, the most important thing in your life should be education, because that's what's going to set you up for success as an adult. So if coming out now will hinder your education, maybe we take some time to think about whether the time is right or not. Those are my concern.
As a fan of the franchise, I count myself among the countless LGBTQ fans who have longed to see themselves and our relationships depicted on 'Star Trek.'
I've always been drawn to love stories. Growing up, I would devour films like 'Moonstruck,' 'Ghost,' 'Love and Basketball,' and 'Love, Jones,' replacing the lovers in my imagination with two men.
It's one thing to be sitting in a classroom and have a teacher tell you how to treat other people; it's a whole other thing to watch, week after week, somebody's life spelled out to you in an emotional way: That lesson is something that will stay with you forever.
It's 'Star Trek!' It's as close to an American mythology as we get. To be a part of that storytelling after being a fan since I was a teenage boy who saw the pilot episode of 'Next Generation' air, it's all very surreal.
When I was a teenager, in the '80s, it was 'Dynasty.' It was 'Beverly Hills, 90210.' And those were fantasies. Those weren't reflective of my experience. And I think we all want that; we all want to see ourselves, our story told, something to relate to, to help us and know that we're not freaks, that our experiences aren't odd.
I learned so much about love from the movies. For a couple of hours, I would allow myself to dream about love and a life that, for me, ordinarily, felt out of reach. So, it was with deep gratitude that I watched the drama 'Call Me by Your Name,' knowing what a beautiful teacher it would be for boys like me.
I think about a young person who is sitting at home, 13 or 14, a person of color, possibly questioning their sexuality, and watching Dr. Hugh Culber and saying, 'I'm a part of an ideal future that we could work towards.' We're planting seeds in the minds of young people to say, 'Your possibilities are limitless.'