Kingston & Ronnie
When I first learned Uncle Ronnie was gay it shocked me. I was about 15 years old. I had a choice to accept him, or not deal with him, and I love him too much not to deal with him. I live for my family. I love my family. We enjoy each other’s company and we’ve always been a small, tight, and close family.
Teenagers and kids, they deal with things differently. If they feel a certain way, they let it be known. They judge a book by the cover. After I found out about Uncle Ronnie, I really learned not to be like that. I was popular in school, but I never liked seeing people get picked on. I don’t judge or discriminate. If I saw it, I would stand up against it because I don’t think it’s right. I would try to take the focus away from the person they are making fun of, and tell them to leave that kid alone.
In high school, all of the basketball players sat at one table, and all of the cool girls sat at one table, and all the nerds at one table. I could go from table to table and shake somebody’s hand. When I was in high school, a bunch of the guys used to jump on the gay guys when school was about to end for the year. I would never do that because it’s wrong. No matter how you feel, a person has the right to be happy. You don’t have the right to take their happiness and peace of mind away. I think the people who do that are hurting, so it’s a hurt person hurting another person.