She lost her gay son to suicide. Now she’s reaching out to LGBTQ teens.
Meet Camika Shelby, a woman bringing the true meaning of Christmas to LGBTQ youth.
Shelby hosted an event at the Birmingham CrossPlex in Birmingham, Alabama over the weekend, which provided queer homeless youth with personal hygiene supplies and plenty of love and hugs for the holiday season. Shelby spearheaded the event in honor of her late son, Nigel, whom she lost to suicide in April.
Nigel had struggled in school as a gay 15-year-old, experiencing a great deal of bullying prior to his death. Camika has used her son’s passing as a call to action.
“I don’t want it to be, ‘the 15-year-old that committed suicide,’” Shelby told Black Magic Project. “I want it to be ‘the 15-year-old whose suicide changed the world.’”
Shelby organized the gathering over the weekend, which presented black LGBTQ teens with gift cards, personal care supplies, and offered LGBTQ mentors to discuss bullying and homelessness.
“Sometimes family can be your own worst enemy. If they don’t love you for who you are, they don’t deserve you,” she said in her remarks. “Don’t let people tear you down for who you are. God knows who you are, and he makes no mistakes.”
The Human Rights Campaign reports that about half of all African-American LGBTQ youth were bullied or cast out of their homes by family members for their queer status. Of those, 90% also report enduring racial discrimination.
“I’m to the point where I’m realizing that my baby had a purpose, regardless of whether it is here on this earth or not,” Shelby told Alabama.com. “So now, I’m his purpose. I am going to continue to speak out. I am going to continue to tell his story.”
Logan Paul, Ricky Gervais, American Airlines, Doug Jones, Boeing, Jeffree Star, Mike Schmuhl, RuPaul: HOT LINKS
AA. American Airlines offers nonbinary options for travelers. ‘American Airlines passengers can now change to “U” or “X” designations by talking to a customer service agent on the phone. American is also in the process of making the change to its website, too. “U” stands for unspecified or undisclosed and X has become a standard marker for those that don’t identify as male or female.’
BOEING. CEO Dennis Muilenburg is out: “Mulienburg, whose resignation is effective immediately, will temporarily be succeeded by Boeing chief financial officer Greg Smith. The Chicago-based company’s chairman David Calhoun will permanently replace Muilenburg as president and CEO on Jan. 13. The leadership change — just two days before Christmas — is part of an effort by the Board of Directors to ‘restore confidence in the company,’ Boeing said in a statement Monday.”
CHINA. U.S. Space Force is direct threat: “Foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told reporters that China is ‘deeply concerned about it and resolutely opposed to it.’ … ‘The relevant U.S. actions are a serious violation of the international consensus on the peaceful use of outer space, undermine global strategic balance and stability, and pose a direct threat to outer space peace and security,’ Geng said at a regular briefing.”
DOUG JONES. Alabama Senate Democrat says he would be willing to “acquit” Trump. ‘Sen. Doug Jones (D-Ala.) said on ABC’s “This Week” that the allegations that President Trump exploited Ukraine for his political benefit are “serious” and “impeachable,” but added that there are “gaps” in the House’s case and that he is willing to acquit Trump in a Senate trial if “those dots aren’t connected.”‘
MIKE SCHMUHL. How Pete Buttigieg’s childhood friend ended up managing his campaign: ‘Schmuhl — an even-keeled, attention-deflecting 36-year-old prone to telling staffers up and down the org chart that they have “the most critical” job on the campaign — has taken a decidedly unconventional path into presidential campaign management. Schmuhl has never staffed a statewide or national political run, unlike most other presidential campaign managers. The biggest campaign he managed before taking charge of Buttigieg’s presidential bid is a House race. In fact, he’s never worked for a candidate outside of Indiana.’
JEFFREE STAR. On confronting his gender identity as a youth: “I used to have thoughts of ‘I am transgender? Should I transition? Am I supposed to be a woman?’ I had so many thoughts in my head because I’ve always been really feminine, and I didn’t understand that I could be a male and wear makeup and feminine clothes and not be a woman. I was confused.”
UK. Home Office grants gay Malaysian man asylum: “Yew Fook Sam, also known as Sam, faced deportation earlier this year after an immigration judge questioned why he could not prove any past relationships to help prove his sexuality. The Home Office relented and granted him asylum for five years following a campaign by Sam’s friends at Open Table, an ecumenical Christian community for LGBTQ+ people.”