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Nyle DiMarco is one of the more delightful human beings you could follow on Twitter. On a typical day, the actor and activist dishes out a charming combination of humor, insight, and conviction on social media. It also doesn't hurt that he occasionally posts cheeky, flattering photos of himself from picturesque places (sample caption: "speedos with shoes").
DiMarco, who is Deaf and has identified as sexually fluid, rose to fame by winning America's Next Top Modelin 2015. The following year, he claimed victory on Dancing With the Stars. The visibility has afforded DiMarco a platform he doesn't want to waste. His eponymous foundation works to improve access to information about early language acquisition for deaf children.
SEE ALSO: 7 microaggressions to avoid during Pride and beyondLast month, he endorsed the Equality Act in a video produced by the Human Rights Campaign. The legislation, which passed in the House of Representatives, is a civil rights bill that would provide federal protection against discrimination for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer people. While more than a dozen states have passed similar nondiscrimination legislation, many have not and no such law exists on a nationwide basis.
Mashable interviewed DiMarco via email about the experience of holding two different identities that are common targets of discriminatory behavior, what he's learned by embracing those identities, and the advice he'd share with LGBTQ youth who also have a disability.
This interview has been edited for clarity.
Mashable: In your video advocating for the Equality Act, you mention how we often "forget people with multiple identities." Can you describe your experience belonging to both the LGBTQ community and the Deaf community and feeling doubly vulnerable to discrimination?
Nyle DiMarco:Oftentimes when I am invited to LGBTQ events, they are unable to provide interpreters. It is a conflicting feeling when I realize LGBTQ is my community where I can finally be myself, but yet still get discriminated against at events. How am I — or 466 million people with hearing loss — going to be actively involved in my own community as well as ending the stigma if we do not have direct access to information in our own language? Hence my involvement in [the Equality] Act: I want to remind my own community to be the best of the best in being inclusive of others. That way we will move faster towards equality.
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Mashable: You've previously spoken about how embracing all of our identities is key to thriving and overcoming the limitations and prejudices that surround us. How have you learned to do this day in and day out, particularly when the stakes for people from marginalized backgrounds can be so high?
ND:To be honest, I was hesitant to live with multiple identities, knowing that will put myself [at a] disadvantage. I was wrong. By being unapologetically myself, I’ve garnered a larger community and more support. I’ve also raised more awareness so the younger generations can live better. The keys are to find and/or build your own community and to utilize social media, saying whatever is on your mind.
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Mashable: Why is it important for you, especially at this point in time, to be an outspoken activist on behalf of the Deaf community as well as LGBTQ rights?
ND: It is important because I want the younger generations to live in en equal, accepting world.
Mashable: Have you learned anything surprising about yourself as a result of your activism?
ND: I think the most surprising part is the amount of support I have received in both of my communities and the rest of the world. This tells me that I have been and am doing the right thing, and that the world is all ears.
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Mashable: What message would you share with LGBTQ youth who also have a disability about how to chart a path forward given the unique obstacles they may face?
ND: My message to disabled LGBTQ folks is that even if you feel you are all alone with your intersectional identities, you can absolutely create that space and that specific community. Growing up I had a difficult time coming out due to the lack of representation within my Deaf community. Because of that, I thought I couldn’t be a part of the LGBTQ community. It was impossible. It [wasn't] until I was 26 when I realized that I could simply create that empty space and build a community for the future generations to possibly follow.
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