Thousands of LGBTQ+ deaths are announced each year; Transgender male bullied into suicide, Queer student beaten to death, Non-Binary person beaten for using the wrong bathroom, we’ve all seen the news and read the stories of beautiful souls being deprived of life. As a transgender hispanic student I’ve seen it face to face. Discriminated for not speaking English, no access to gender neutral bathrooms and having to deal with the stares in my “biological sex bathroom”, the cyber bullying being called a “shemale”. It’s evident as members of the community we are prone to bullying and developing mental health disorders. As a first hand witness of these events I have decided to major in Psychology. Being a psychologist will allow me to reach out and provide support to LGBTQ+ members but most importantly, LGBTQ+ youth. I will become a sanctuary to these amazing individuals. I hope to be able to lower suicide rates in any way possible. I will reduce cultural stigmas between the LGBTQ+ and the hispanic community informing every parent of the situation and the importance of mental health for not just the LGBTQ+ but for anyone. Being the GSA president at my school has taught me leadership, advocacy, but most importantly how to become a safe space for younger generations. Personally, I became a big brother to many of the members, aiding them in mental health resources and a person to talk to when no one else would listen. I can only hope to do this but impact thousands rather than just a club and moving percentage rates. For me it goes further than just the community, I plan to travel to my home country, Mexico, providing the same support to my people. Stigma is a real issue and will never be resolved unless confronted. I have one more reason for my career goals, a very personal reason. August 22nd 2022 my only sibling Ruben Salvador Cesena, had been killed. His two children aged 8 and 3 at the time hugged his casket at his funeral in Mexico. My family was distraught watching it over zoom because we couldn’t afford to travel to Mexico at the time. My father and I were destroyed, my mother couldn't bare to watch her son be buried through a screen. We still don’t know why they killed him, he talked to us every week, his wife said he was doing good. This is one of my biggest motivators to become a psychologist to help people like my brother’s murderer who don’t have access to resources. I want to find the reasoning that drives them to a point of ending another person's life. People who believe they can’t talk to someone to be able to get help because stigma says men can’t be emotional and mental health isn’t real. But we all know, it's a real issue we can only hope to resolve. This is my purpose in my community.

Thousands of LGBTQ+ deaths are announced each year; Transgender male bullied into suicide, Queer student beaten to death, Non-Binary person beaten for using the wrong bathroom, we’ve all seen the news and read the stories of beautiful souls being deprived of life. As a transgender hispanic student I’ve seen it face to face. Discriminated for not speaking English, no access to gender neutral bathrooms and having to deal with the stares in my “biological sex bathroom”, the cyber bullying being called a “shemale”. It’s evident as members of the community we are prone to bullying and developing mental health disorders. As a first hand witness of these events I have decided to major in Psychology. Being a psychologist will allow me to reach out and provide support to LGBTQ+ members but most importantly, LGBTQ+ youth. I will become a sanctuary to these amazing individuals. I hope to be able to lower suicide rates in any way possible. I will reduce cultural stigmas between the LGBTQ+ and the hispanic community informing every parent of the situation and the importance of mental health for not just the LGBTQ+ but for anyone. Being the GSA president at my school has taught me leadership, advocacy, but most importantly how to become a safe space for younger generations. Personally, I became a big brother to many of the members, aiding them in mental health resources and a person to talk to when no one else would listen. I can only hope to do this but impact thousands rather than just a club and moving percentage rates. For me it goes further than just the community, I plan to travel to my home country, Mexico, providing the same support to my people. Stigma is a real issue and will never be resolved unless confronted. I have one more reason for my career goals, a very personal reason. August 22nd 2022 my only sibling Ruben Salvador Cesena, had ended his life. His two children aged 8 and 3 at the time hugged his casket at his funeral in Mexico. My family was distraught watching it over zoom because we couldn’t afford to travel to Mexico at the time. My father and I were destroyed, my mother couldn't bare to watch her son be buried through a screen. We still don’t know what drove him to the point, he talked to us every week, his wife said he was doing good. This is one of my biggest motivators to become a psychologist to help people like my brother who didn’t have access to resources. People who believe they can’t talk to someone to be able to get help because stigma says men can’t be emotional and mental health isn’t real. But we all know, Its a real issue we can only hope to resolve. This is my purpose in my community.

Thousands of LGBTQ+ deaths are announced each year; Transgender male bullied into suicide, Queer student beaten to death, Non-Binary person beaten for using the wrong bathroom, we’ve all seen the news and read the stories of beautiful souls being deprived of life. As a transgender hispanic student I’ve seen it face to face. Discriminated for not speaking English, no access to gender neutral bathrooms and having to deal with the stares in my “biological sex bathroom”, the cyber bullying being called a “shemale”. It’s evident as members of the community we are prone to bullying and developing mental health disorders. As a first hand witness of these events I have decided to major in Psychology. Being a psychologist will allow me to reach out and provide support to LGBTQ+ members but most importantly, LGBTQ+ youth. I will become a sanctuary to these amazing individuals. I hope to be able to lower suicide rates in any way possible. I will reduce cultural stigmas between the LGBTQ+ and the hispanic community informing every parent of the situation and the importance of mental health for not just the LGBTQ+ but for anyone. Being the GSA president at my school has taught me leadership, advocacy, but most importantly how to become a safe space for younger generations. Personally, I became a big brother to many of the members, aiding them in mental health resources and a person to talk to when no one else would listen. I can only hope to do this but impact thousands rather than just a club and moving percentage rates. For me it goes further than just the community, I plan to travel to my home country, Mexico, providing the same support to my people. Stigma is a real issue and will never be resolved unless confronted. I have one more reason for my career goals, a very personal reason. August 22nd 2022 my only sibling Ruben Salvador Cesena, had ended his life. His two children aged 8 and 3 at the time hugged his casket at his funeral in Mexico. My family was distraught watching it over zoom because we couldn’t afford to travel to Mexico at the time. My father and I were destroyed, my mother couldn't bare to watch her son be buried through a screen. We still don’t know what drove him to the point, he talked to us every week, his wife said he was doing good. This is one of my biggest motivators to become a psychologist to help people like my brother who didn’t have access to resources. People who believe they can’t talk to someone to be able to get help because stigma says men can’t be emotional and mental health isn’t real. But we all know, Its a real issue we can only hope to resolve. This is my purpose in my community.