“There is so much more in Kansas City to do,” he said. The much larger city’s LGBTQ residents are more visible, he said. Mays married an Army soldier in May, and the men have moved just outside of Kansas City, Missouri. “It doesn’t have the gay community that a larger city has, but I definitely felt a lot safer there than in a small town like LaGrange.I didn’t feel like I had to worry about being out or expressively gay because it wasn’t something new to downtown Columbus.” “My personal experience in Columbus felt a lot safer as a gay man,” he said. He never felt like he was in danger, but he also didn’t feel accepted in LaGrange. He was outed during his freshman year of high school. His experience in Columbus was different from his hometown. There were a few gay clubs to visit then, too.
He spent much of his time downtown, and the music and art students he hung around made him feel safe and welcomed. He moved to Columbus from nearby LaGrange, Georgia, in 2009 after graduating high school, and studied music at Columbus State University. “It was the highlight of (a couple of the guy’s) weeks,” he said. “You want to be able to incorporate any type of ethnicity, any type of culture, any type of sexual orientation, any type of age, any type of gender and have people benefit from all those to be able to create Columbus,” he said. Trying to better understand and empathize with the LGBTQ community as a whole.
Hobbs, the former LGBTQ liaison, is currently working on getting free “We Serve All” stickers distributed to businesses across Columbus, he said.Ĭreating safe spaces for Columbus residents to express themselves. Triller said he doesn’t mean a store has to fly a large rainbow flag out front, but possibly posting signage in a window that says all are welcome. Triller has his own ideas about what might help Columbus, pointing out three things the city can continue to work on for its LGBTQ residents.īusinesses offering a visible sign of inclusion for LGBTQ customers.
“It ain’t no Atlanta, but at the same time, we aren’t Lumpkin or Cusseta.You can make a difference here.” What could Columbus do differently? “I think Columbus is a lot better than a lot of places out there,” he said. He said it’s an opportunity for people to spend an entire day or afternoon exploring Columbus without having to go too far.
There are things about his new city that he loves, like white water rafting and the coming Banks Food Hall. Triller argues you can’t really compare larger cities like Atlanta to Columbus. “I’ve been with them every other Sunday since.You can just be who you are there without somebody judging you or you being concerned about other people.” “I’d never done anything like that before,” he said. Triller reached out, and they eventually invited him to come out and lift. He first learned about the group from an Instagram ad as he was preparing to move from North Carolina to Georgia in February. Triller is a member of the Fantastic Beasts LGBTQ Powerlifting Club. Most of the time, the sessions only last as long as his commute. Army soldier, drives an hour and a half from Columbus to Atlanta nearly every other Sunday to take part in a powerlifting club. We want that.”Įric Triller, a 29-year old U.S. “We’re here,” said Jacy Jenkins, the city’s new LGBTQ liaison. If it comes before the Columbus Council and is passed, Columbus could be one of only a few cities in Georgia with these protections. The city may soon create legal protections that could prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and/or gender identity in areas like housing and public accommodations. This represents a challenge for changemakers in the Fountain City - to constantly push forward to keep people here and create safe spaces as Columbus and the rest of the nation becomes generally more accepting of LGBTQ people. Some just want to live in a place that is already more accepting of LGBTQ people. They wanted higher-paid, high-skill jobs. Others want to leave or have said goodbye to Columbus for economic reasons. Still, they say there is much to be done.įor some who left Columbus, drawn away by the military or some other force, they see Columbus as closed off and less accepting than their new homes in larger metropolitan areas like Kansas City.