Queerness isn’t just about who we choose to be “the one,” who we fuck, or who we fantasize about. It’s also about all the people who help us out along the way to figuring out who we are and inspire us to live as our most authentic selves. That means the mentors, the icons, the strangers in online chat rooms—even the bullies. In a world obsessed with significant others, we want to celebrate all the seemingly insignificant relationships that often actually end up shaping who we are; all the non-traditional family members that, in the end, teach us the most about being our queer selves.Broadly has been celebrating some of those relationships through a column called Queerly Beloved. And at the beginning of August, we'll be turning that column into a podcast profiling some of those relationships—from long term pen-pals who share queer stories over prison walls to siblings who helped each other transition into new presentations of gender. We also want this podcast to feature as many of our LGBTQ readers as possible. So, at the end of each episode, we'll be featuring messages from all of you.To do that, we set up a mailbox where you can leave notes about people in your queer community who have influenced you, love letters to role models and crushes and partners, or short anecdotes about a queer relationship that’s helped to shape who you are. If you think you’d be a good fit for the podcast, please also feel free to leave us a little introduction about yourself and the relationship you have in mind, or email our producer Sarah Burke at Sarahluby.burke@vice.com.Unless you want to be a guest, though, please don’t leave any identifying details such as full names or workplaces (of you or other people)—unless you're giving a shout out to a public figure, like Kehlani or RuPaul. But please do leave your email address (spell it out!) after your message, so that we can contact you.Can't wait to hear from you!
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