- I did not know Naya Rivera,
but I do remember how Naya made me feel through her work.
(somber music)
And for me, someone who's Latino and queer,
she made me feel like I wasn't a freak in high school.
Her character, Santana Lopez, really helped
to validate my identity when I was coming of age,
and honestly she was one of my
biggest role models growing up.
I grew up in a space where I couldn't openly be myself.
My family was religious, my school was not very progressive.
I didn't know any other queer people.
I was scared, I was very lonely,
and I found myself questioning my sexuality
as I entered high school,
which as we know is already stressful enough.
So I just didn't know who I was.
I didn't know how to be like a queer person
and I didn't even wanna be me back then.
I was so different from everybody else
that I found myself very depressed, very suicidal,
and I just kept constantly asking myself
why the hell was I the only person going through this?
And it wasn't until I actually started
watching "Glee" for the first time
that I realized that I wasn't
the only person going through this.
I remember seeing Naya on the screen for the first time
and all I could think was,
she is so confident, she's funny, she's beautiful,
she's literally everything I would wanna be when I grow up.
And I think Santana Lopez
was the best character on that show,
and it wasn't just because she could
read you to hell and back,
but it was also because she made me feel so seen
and I know for many of you out there,
she made you feel seen.
My eyes were never off her when she was on my screen,
and I really needed that representation
when I was in high school.
I didn't have any other reference for an out Latina,
or a Latino, or anyone.
The media, especially back then
and still even continuing now,
is so white dominant that I didn't
see anyone like myself on that screen.
And to have someone who had some of the best vocals,
some of the best one-liners, some of the best acting,
and just stage presence, she was such a superstar,
it was beyond inspiring to watch someone on my screen
just be so excellent.
I remember one of the things that hit me the most
when I was watching that was I watched her get outed
in front of literally the entire world on that show.
I watched her come out to her grandma on that show
and not be accepted by her,
and I just knew that feeling so well.
But she still overcame everything in front of her
and got her happy ending, which, spoiler,
she ended up marrying her best friend, Brittany,
which was the best ending to her plot line
that we could have ever gotten on the show,
and she made me feel like I could also get my happy ending.
She was a mother, a daughter, a sister,
and a very gorgeous Latina woman
who was such an ally to not only the Latino community
but also to the queer community.
And though I didn't know her personally,
I think that's some of the magic
of putting your art out there.
People receive it and find themselves within it.
When she played Santana, she had elements of so many of us,
and she helped show that queer people are just people.
We're all just trying to be happy,
to love, and to be loved in return.
All I've ever wanted was to meet you, Naya,
to thank you for everything you've done for me,
to tell you that you're one of the biggest inspirations
I've ever had in the world,
and that I can't thank you enough
for helping me find who I am,
to tell her that she changed my life
and I aspire to change the world
in the way that she changed it.
Naya, I love you, your community loved you,
and I sincerely hope you rest in power
'cause we miss you already.
(somber music continues)