Lisa P. Jackson/ USEPA Administrator: Each one of us must do our part to protect our
friends and family from thinking they are alone in this world. We must remind each person
that their talents are needed and that we value what they have to say and who they will
become in the future. I know that I could not do the work that I do without the invaluable
contribution my colleagues here at EPA make on a daily basis. As Administrator to the
Environmental Protection Agency, I am honored to work with so many outstanding colleagues
that have experienced hard challenges in their life due to their sexuality or gender identity,
yet still have the courage to be open about who they are and the people they love. Each
of them kept focused on their life goals by telling themselves it will get better each
day.
[MUSIC]
Brittany Lynn Roche: The first time I really got in trouble I was four years old, and my
dad whipped me for wearing my mother's clothes. So, for a lot of my late years in my youth,
and early teens, and into my twenties, I probably thought that I was probably a little insane,
because there was really nothing to tell me I wasn't.
Kevin Minoli: And while a small town has a lot of benefits to offer, one of the things that
it doesn't have often times is a lot of diversity. And so, I knew how I was feeling inside, but
when I looked around I didn't see anybody else who I thought looked like me or felt like me.
Michael Emerson: When I was younger, I would say probably like eight or nine, there was
a revival and the organist was a male and he got on the organ and I remember like some
of the women behind me saying, oh he has sugar in his tank, or he's the f-word, or that's
a sissy on the organ, and it affected me later on in life, I would say really badly,
Nigel Simon: At the time you were still hearing many anti-gay messages, messages that
saying that you weren't part of the society. So it led me to mask, or to hide my sexuality.
Rebecca Roose: Some kids at school started spreading rumors about me and these were people
who I had previously trusted and considered my friends.
It was hurtful, I didn't know who I could trust. I felt like I was under attack and
I was being bullied for something that I didn't even see in myself yet.
[MUSIC]
Brittany Lynn Roche: My freshman high school biology class. One day, the instructor actually
made a statement about the sad case of people who were born with the body of one sex but
the mind of another sex. And it was like a light went off over my head. For the first
time, I knew that there were other people in the world like me, that I was not the only one.
Rebecca Roose: And when I was first coming out to myself and coming out to others, I
would draw strength from the people who were in my life who did accept me. I learned that
the more I accepted myself and who I was, the better my life got, the happier I got,
the more fulfilled I got.
Michael Emerson: I decided to move from Rochester, New York to Washington D.C., and within -- I
would say a year, I was so established I had friends that had similar stories to -- that
I had. I had friends that were supportive.
Nigel Simon: Once I loved me for me, and said, "This is me. This is how I'm going to
move forward with my life," I had to find a religious house to affirm who I was, and
who would affirm me. And that's what I found. [MUSIC]
Rebecca Roose: Being openly bisexual at EPA has been so much easier than I ever thought
that it would be. And that's been really liberating.
Kevin Minoli: When I came to EPA to work full time, I made the decision right away that I
was going to be "out" from the minute that I got here. I didn't want to start
this important part of my life in the closet again. And it was really the best decision
I ever made.
Brittany Lynn Roche: When you transition from one gender to another, it's not like coming
out as gay. When you transition genders, you look completely different and you are basically
in everyone's face. So I knew what I was going to be dealing with, with people
trying to accept me at work, and it went very well. When I went up the elevators, I got
off on my floor. And about that time, somebody got off the elevator and it was a man who, an
old man, who worked in the same office area that I did. And I'd always wondered how
he would accept me once I transitioned. And he stopped, and he looked at me, and he said,
"Brittany." And he came forward, and he hugged me.
Nigel Simon: I love the mission that we have. I feel that it's supportive, and it also
extends to my personal life, because the one thing that we think about here at the EPA
is reusing materials that people throw away. And sometimes people want to throw away gays
and lesbians. When you really think about the recycling message, we have been reborn.
Brittany Lynn Roche: You are normal, you're as normal as anyone else, and don't let
anyone tell you you're not. [MUSIC]
Lisa P. Jackson: I know that today may be a really hard time for some of you and you
need things to change right now. But sometimes life is like a storm; it can be very unpredictable,
rough and do a lot of damage. But eventually storms go away and things get rebuilt better
than ever. But if you feel like you can't weather out this storm alone, then please
ask for help. Organizations like The Trevor Project will give you the tools and resources
you need to help you. But until then, please hold on. Find something that makes you happy
and surround yourself within that feeling, whether that's science, music or whatever hobbies
you enjoy, find that one thing that keeps you smiling. Then every day will get better.
[MUSIC]