I& #39;ve learned so much over the past decade. I& #39;d been so uneducated about the world and had no idea. And it wasn& #39;t just because I grew up in the military, or had a semi-religious upbringing, it& #39;s because the system was built for me so that I never had to peek around its boundaries.

Even the prejudice I& #39;d faced for being a gay kid with stereotypically girly interests doesn& #39;t preclude me from the systemic privilege I& #39;ve had. I know it& #39;d be impossible to fully extricate my own successes and safety net from that privilege.

I still have a lot to learn, and that& #39;s kind of scary and daunting, because I don& #39;t want to screw up or say the wrong things or burden others around me. I& #39;m sure I& #39;ve screwed up in the past. But I also don& #39;t want to be passive when I could potentially help now.

My hope is to raise others up, and stand up for their rights. The racism in this country is appalling, the emotional burden placed on POC is horrific, and the financial and physical danger many face is something I could never fully comprehend.

If I can help, I will do my best. And in the meantime I will try to keep educating myself and keep learning from my incredible peers who have already taught me so much.