I'm just going to straight up tell you, if you don't accept your child's sexual orientation, you're the problem, not them. The world is changing if you haven't already noticed, and you need to accept it because you honestly do not have a choice. I’m tired of all the homophobic bigots that we have in the world and it’s time that everyone learns to accept that not everyone is “straight” anymore and quite honestly, we need to start with parents like you.

It is honestly so upsetting to hear so many stories about teens that feel obligated that they cannot express who they truly are because of their parents. Growing up, teens have to worry about criticism from their peers so that they can fit in, but when a child has to worry about criticism from their parents as well, there is too much pressure put on them. As your children, we will do anything to receive your approval, even if that means hiding our true feelings to make you happy. But guess what, having to hide who we truly are comes with consequences, we can’t be happy. We become depressed. We live in this little world hiding from the truth because we are too scared for you to find out. We cannot be who we want to be.

So, here's the thing, you need to accept your children for who they are, because guess what? No one has a choice. They did not choose to be different. They did not choose for you to not accept them. They, we, just want to be loved, and if it’s not by you, then hopefully it will be by someone that will love us regardless of their gender. We get it, as a parent, all you want for your child is success and happiness and part of that is going to have to be their sexual orientation.

Something that needs to be said: it is not okay to blame someone else for making your child “gay,” cause here’s the thing, it has nothing to do with someone elses choice. One does not choose to be gay, they are simply born that way. And a lot of the times children don’t express their feelings until they truly are comfortable with being themselves.

As a parent, if you do not accept your child because of their sexual orientation, just know that you are pushing them away. Your child will end up resenting you and isolating themselves from you.

From a quote that I once read by Birmingham Pride Supporting Equality & Freedom Around The World.

"I don’t understand why people think that having a gay child means they failed as a parent. Disowning your child means you failed as a parent."

Now that it's 2016, more and more individuals are “coming out” because it is becoming more acceptable and people feel safe and comfortable. We need to change the way people view sexual orientation. Love is love and people should have the freedom to express love the way they want. Society has come a long way, but we still have more to do, especially with the way parents accept their children.