Wilbert Tabone

Thank you for joining us Wilbert and welcome to Everyday Heroes Project.

"Growing up in a nuclear and heteronormative environment did of course affect my outlook on what society expected of me. Therefore, during my early youth I was not exposed to queer culture at all and at times I felt like a fish in a vast stormy ocean, making a lonely journey in search of a shoal. Societal pressures did get to me in the end and I found myself appeasing that heteronormative expectation for two years. In the process I was destroying my physical being by trying to be someone I was not. My inner self was giving me all the signs and red lights that this was not what I should be doing - but hey … everyone around me was happy. I was swimming in favour of the heteronormative currents and doing what was expected of me.

Going abroad really helped break the cycle. For the first time I felt completely free. Free to be myself, so much so that I started involving myself in activism. Coming back to Malta I retained this energy and continued involving myself in the local activism scene as I felt that I could apply the energy and enthusiasm I had accumulated during my time overseas.

Today I feel that such a reality has shifted slightly. Society has become more accepting. But, as an LGBTI+ community we must be careful not to exert our own pressures on what it means to be part of the community. We must realise that it’s made of different and distinct individuals from different backgrounds who bring their own light and joy to us. We must not discriminate and we must not benchmark. Else we risk creating a more fragmented society.

To all those who have trodden upon this post I say: just be who you are! Only you truly know yourself, and no one can take that away from you.

I fully support this project as it gives one the opportunity to breakaway from the past and share their experience with others. I truly hope that our stories will serve as a beacon of hope to those struggling in finding their path or identity. May they not stray where we had, or if they are there .. may we be their guiding soul towards a brighter note colourful future. Spread the love"

- Wilbert

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