I Am Unique

Claire bravely shares her experience as a Chinese adoptee of gay parents and the kinds of reactions she receives when telling her story. She challenges stereotypes and assumptions, while also reflecting on the ways homophobia directly impacts her.

For all videos:

  • What did you see in the video?
  • What do you think this video was about?
  • What stood out to you the most in this video?

For this video:

  • How did stereotypes negatively affect Claire?
  • How have stereotypes affected your life?
  • Has your family ever been criticized? How did it make you feel?
  • How do you express your identity?

Materials needed: poster paper, markers, rulers, colored pencils, paint, paintbrushes

Step 1.
Students should work in pairs to design/create a poster that either promotes LGBTQ+ pride or gives tips on how to be a LGBTQ+ ally. Encourage students to look for relevant famous quotes online and/or come up with their own catchy phrases. Posters should be creative, attractive, have correct grammar/spelling.

Step 2.
Collect all posters and post around campus.

Materials needed: paper, pen

Step 1.
Tell students to pretend that they are journalists for a popular radio talk show and they have a chance to invite one or two of these video’s characters to their studio for a one-on-one conversation. They must come up with:

  • A name for their talk show
  • A name for the segment that their guests will be a part of
  • A teaser (include date and time) to encourage listeners to tune in
  • A respectful introduction for each of them
  • At least 5 great questions for each of them that will be interesting, respectful and engaging

Step 2.
Ask student volunteers to share their ideas with the class.

Step 3.
Collect everyone’s work for class credit.

Materials needed: paper, pen/pencil, internet, and printing

Step 1.
Tell students that they will look online for two different LGBTQ-related articles. One article must be a story about LGBTQ+ youth who have experienced discrimination/violence due to hate/homophobia. If your students are struggling to find an article, or you are short on time/internet access, or simply want to select a specific set of articles that you want your class to read, go to this website for a list of articles on the topic: glaad.org/blog/incidents-anti-lgbtq-hate-violence-2019

Step 2.
Students should read their selected story and answer (some or all of) the following questions on a sheet of paper:

  • Describe the survivor/victim in this story (name, age, ethnicity, residential area, etc.)
  • How did this person identify? What about their sexuality or gender identity made them a target?
  • What happened to this person? Describe the crime that was committed against them.
  • How was the victim affected? (Emotionally, Mentally, Physically, Socially)
  • Why do you believe the perpetrators behaved the way they did?
  • What were the consequences for the perpetrator(s)?
  • What is your opinion about this story? What do you wish you (or someone else) could’ve done to defend this person?

Step 3.
The other article must be a story about a person/group who demonstrated resiliency/activism for the LGBTQ+ community. They should read their selected story and answer (some or all of) the following questions on a sheet of paper:

  • Describe the protagonist in this story (name, age, ethnicity, residential area, etc.)
  • How does this person identify?
  • How did this person take a stance/show pride/celebrate their sexuality? What did they do to bring a positive light to the LGBTQ+ community?
  • Who was this person directing their position to?
  • How was this person affected by what they did? (Emotionally, Mentally, Socially)
  • What is your opinion about this story? What would you like to tell that person if you had the chance to meet them?

Step 4.
Students must print their stories and staple it to their responses. Before collecting them for class credit, ask them to volunteer to share a few details of their selected story with the class.

Note: If you are going to do this activity, please do both parts and help students find both types of articles. This is important because we want to express to our students that, even though LGBTQ+ people face significant challenges due to homophobia and discrimination, there are so many LGBTQ+ activists and agents out there that are creating significant change in the rights and respect of LGBTQ+ people everywhere. We want to be realistic about the issues and also instill hope in students.

Materials needed: paper, pen

Step 1.
Tell students that they will write their own “I am Unique” poem. Have everyone take out a piece of paper and a writing utensil.

Step 2.
Give them 10 minutes to write a poem.

Prompt: Beginning line will be “I am Unique,” then each student will free write a poem that describes their identity/identities and any point they want to make or something they want others to know/understand. After they finish, allow those who want to share to share.

Step 3.
If time is limited, have students write a haiku that has to do with one or more of their identities. When they are done, ask students to take turns sharing with the class.