Many people like to share their opinions. That's fine. But I've learned that not all opinions are created equal. If people of colour share their experiences with racism, that will always be more valid than white people telling everyone what they think of racism and its effects. Why? Because we can't fully know what it's like to go through something unless we've gone through it ourselves.
The same is true when it comes to straight and cisgender people sharing opinions about queer people. When folks who have no lived experience make disparaging comments about my marriage to Zoe, her decision to transition and our support for our transgender teen, it makes it easier to disregard their opinions. I can have opinions about New Zealand, but I've never been there, you know?
-- Amanda Jetté Knox, Love Lives Here, p. 233
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