What a marvelous story of acceptance!! At a time when we're grasping and struggling for acceptance, at a time when we're losing teen after teen after LGBT teen to suicide because of a lack thereof, we get this heartwarming story from Jessica Romani about her brother, Dylan.
Dylan, who is bisexual, went through all of the usual trials and tribulations that nearly all LGBT teens experience. He knew at a very young age that he was "different". He struggled with acceptance of himself! And, of course, he was bullied. Or, according to Jessica, he dealt with "extreme bullying".
In Dylan's own words, "...I was so scared of what he would do or think or say because he's a tough guy and i am his only son so I didn't want to be a disappointment or anything." That sounds familiar. What he found, instead, was the surprise of his life. Fred Romani, the dad, in an amazing show of unconditional love and acceptance, got the Lady Gaga-inspired catch-phrase, "Born This Way" tattooed in Italian on his wrist. Dylan already had it on his. You have to watch the video to see the reaction to it.
When I read Jessica's and Dylan's description of their dad, the image comes to mind of the stereotypical testosterone-driven Italian male. Sylvester Stallone. Santino Corleone. Fred Romani showed, however, that macho men also have a heart. Especially when it comes to family. Even moreso, I would say, when it comes to his only son! It's that show of unconditional love and acceptance, even if he doesn't yet fully understand what his son is going through, that makes the most significant difference. It's that acceptance that, say, EricJames Borges was looking for but got the opposite, instead. And, we know where that led. The mental and emotional health of young Dylan Romani grew exponentially by Fred's gesture of support. That's what makes this story so important. And, quite touching.
I first viewed this video, and story, yesterday on Wipeout Homophobia on Facebook, the social network super page that is helping so many people, LGBT and straight alike, and saving lives. It's stories like this that makes us realize that love really is winning the war over hate. For Fred, an old school Italian dad, to reach out to his young, struggling son with such a loving gesture, and then to see Dylan's caught-off-guard, stunned reaction speaks volumes to the power of love and acceptance.
The hope, of course, is that this video will catch on and go viral so that people all over the world can see with their own eyes the sheer power of unconditional love and acceptance. Dylan's tears of joy say it all. If more families showed their LGBT teens this type of support.... Well, you know. Let's hope that this video is a harbinger of things to come.
