Recently, space became LGBTQ-friendly. Over at Bustle, Planting Peace was honored for sending a pride flag with an attached Go Pro video camera into space via a high altitude balloon. Yes, in the author’s words, “space became a safe…space.”

With this symbolization, the pressure is now on Earth to get its act together concerning LGBTQ rights and gender equality. It makes a lot of sense, no? In space, people have yet to set the rules, so consequently there is no discrimination.

This begs the question, what makes it difficult for LGBTQ people to enjoy freedom on Earth? Of course, there are plenty of conditions that have been built over millennia working against the LGBTQ community. However, this does not prevent people on an individual level from working to change these conditions.

I’ve read somewhere “Society is built on the shoulders of two people.” To me, this means that any type of interaction you enter into, you are choosing. You are deciding what to represent. Whether that’s indifference, support, or hate, you are choosing.

The digital world is included. Any anonymous comment you make, while the accountability is low, you are still making a choice. Conscious or unconsciously, this choice lays the foundation for your behavior. Here’s another quote plug, “You are what you do.”

As it relates to the LGBTQ community, your interactions with other people display whether or not you are a supporter (ally). So, if you hear somebody degrading the community out of hate, and you just listen in silence, you are supporting that hate.

Now, this doesn’t mean you have the responsibility to go out and change everybody’s mind. This just doesn’t work. Instead, why not try to encourage the person to see from a different perspective?

I usually ask a question that makes them think critically about their opinions. Most of the time, we aren’t aware of why we hold certain opinions and if we should or not, we just do. The environment we find ourselves in the most has a large impact on how we think and act. Proposing a simple question might bring that person to ask, “Why do I think like this?”

As the space flag shows us, simple actions can have far-reaching actions.

Speaking of things in space, I wrote an article for the religion and pop culture journal, Nomos Journal, entitled “Space Flower”. It’s about a mixed race Buddhist nun that is sent into space to colonize Mars…alone. Click here to read.