'Love, Simon'

I am so proud of what this film accomplished. It was brave and, in moments, raw. It represented a variety of groups and struggles within the gay community, in much the same way Black Panther did for African American culture.

I wish I had this movie back in high school, but kids today do, and I hope it frees them. I hope it gives them wings.

I couldn't help but think of my high school classmates in the early 2000s who made the courageous choice to be openly gay at a time where it wasn't trendy or as widely accepted. I cannot imagine the fortitude it took for you to live your truth before it was easy to do so. You are the real trailblazers.

We still have some work to do, but we have come so incredibly far. I wish I could personally thank each and every person involved in the production of this movie for making such an intimate and personal film about the struggle and heartache of hiding who you are from the world, but also celebrating the beauty of love and withdrawing yourself from fear.

Stories like Love, Simon are the reason movies can be so important. They are a part of the fabric of our culture. Once human beings leave this earth, what will be our legacy? What will we leave behind? The answer to that lies within our architecture and our art. Movies are a part of that art. They tell a story of who we were. Like the Pyramids of Egypt or the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City. They reflect the values of the people who lived in those times.

Movies have the power to change hearts and minds. They start a discussion. They bring us together. You walk into a theater one moment and leave a changed person the next. These stories are worth fighting for.

When the theater erupted into applause at my second screening of this movie, they weren't just applauding for the characters. They were clapping for any kid struggling in his bedroom alone to make sense of who he was against a society that might reject him. They were applauding for the first mainstream movie to ever feature a gay teen coming of age.

This movie is about representation. It's about telling struggling kids that they matter and that their feelings are normal; that they're loved and that they deserve love, too. No movie has ever done this. This kind of inclusion on the big screen will make it just a little bit easier. It will give kids the courage to live more open lives because now they've seen themselves portrayed in a major motion picture surrounded by their friends and family. It has the power to stop a suicide.

I can't wait for the day that kids don't need to come out anymore, because it's a horrible thing. Life is hard enough without it. But it starts with parents and teachers. Don't assume someone is straight by default. Don't push religion on them. Don't label them by asking if they have a girlfriend or boyfriend or assigning gender based colors to their wardrobe. All of these things matter. That's how any group is integrated into a society. By normalization, inclusion and representation.

I can't wait to see the stories that come after this or were inspired by it.

Keep stoking that fire, trailblazers. Shine so bright you carve an everlasting light into the midnight sky.

Love,

Michael