Michaela Kennedy Cuomo Opens Up About Her 'Queer' Identity While Celebrating Pride
Sean NeumannFri, June 4, 2021
Michaela Kennedy Cuomo Instagram Michaela Kennedy Cuomo
Michaela Kennedy Cuomo, the youngest daughter of Kerry Kennedy and embattled New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, is celebrating Pride Month with a message to everyone on "the whole spectrum of sexualities" as she opens up about her bisexuality and shares support for other members of the LGBTQ community.
On Instagram on Thursday afternoon, Michaela, 23, posted two smiling photos of herself wearing a baseball cap that reads "gay for you."
"To those who are contending with the compulsive heterosexuality our society force feeds us and innate attraction beyond cis [heterosexual] folks, please know that you are not alone," she wrote alongside the photos.
"To the questioning folks, know that we all reserve the right to change our minds or evolve at anytime," she wrote, adding, "There is nothing wrong with you for not fitting into a limiting, socially constructed box."
She encouraged LGBTQ allies to be vocal in their support "by speaking up against homophobia and by actively reaching out to the members of your community who's sexual expression may be isolating."
"Being pro gay marriage is not enough to assure queer folks that we will not be ostracized for our sexuality," she wrote.
And she chastised social media platforms like Instagram that she said had been censoring certain hashtags like #bi and #lesbian.
"When you strip my ability to find queer content and community, you damn sexual minorities to exist on the internet only as fringe groups to objectify," she wrote. "If #bi weren't censored, maybe I could have accessed the information and tools that as a bisexual person I would need to protect myself from increased rates of sexual victimization, homelessness, hunger, unemployment, hate crimes, and mental health challenges.
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"Today," however, "I stand in my queer identity with pride, and in memory of those who came before me," Michaela wrote.
"I stand indebted to the activists who fought for my right to love and happiness," she continued. "I stand with a helping hand outreached to those finding their way from under socially constructed boxes to emerge from the closet. I'm standing with you."
In a statement, Gov. Cuomo told PEOPLE: "I love, support and couldn't have more pride in Michaela."
Taylor Hill/FilmMagic From left: Gov. Andrew Cuomo and daughter Michaela Kennedy Cuomo
Her Thursday post appears to be the first time Michaela has opened up about her identity at such length. She has previously celebrated Bisexuality Visibility Day, which is in September.
Last year, she also playfully tweeted about being single — "if anyone's feeling #kennedycuomosexual."
In the past, she has also used social media to advocatefor LGBTQ pride and other issues, such as promoting pandemic precautions and mental health awareness.
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