We also often need to be shown “this group isn’t trying to hurt you, most are just trying to get by and they have full internal experiences just like you.” Growing up people like me were typically depicted in media as predators or dead sex workers and in addition to the shame and fear it taught me, it also resulted in some people having to learn to see me as just a person and member of their community with no ill will towards them.
We also often need to be shown “this group isn’t trying to hurt you, most are just trying to get by and they have full internal experiences just like you.” Growing up people like me were typically depicted in media as predators or dead sex workers and in addition to the shame and fear it taught me, it also resulted in some people having to learn to see me as just a person and member of their community with no ill will towards them.