"I know I promised you that I would be straight, but I’m sorry to say that I cannot be."
A powerful video showing LGBTQ Asian Americans coming out to immigrant parents has been released.
Titled Unspoken: Asian Americans On Coming Out To Immigrant Parents, the video shows six LGBTQ Asian Americans sharing what they would say to their immigrant parents in an ideal world.
The Huffington Post reports that the film was released on National Coming Out Day, 11 October 2017. Speaking to HuffPost, Korean American filmmaker Patrick G. Lee said the film aims to remind families that “they don’t have to choose between loving their children and being faithful to their culture or to their religion”.
Lee added that the film is for “all of us who remember growing up and feeling weird or different from everyone else.”
“Our hope is to show immigrant parents of LGBTQ kids that they don’t have to choose between loving their children and being faithful to their culture or to their religion,” he told HuffPost. “We want to show our families that unconditional love is possible.”
In the clip, the six LGBTQ Asian Americans appear in front of the camera reading out letters and messages addressed to their parents. Their experiences are equally diverse and moving.
One participant named Kevin says, “I know I promised you that I would be straight, but I’m sorry to say that I cannot be. And God knows I tried after all of that.”
Trans individual Sens says, “I hope you can understand that I chose to stay alive as a fem, but I do not choose the hardships that come with it.”
Emi says, “I’m still that silly, goofy child of yours”.
A 25-minute version of the film is currently in the works.