I know many of my female friends do not like being referred to as "ladies."

I'll tell you what gives me hope. After the struggle for marriage equality, the LGBTQ community has built some very powerful organizations; in particular, I'm thinking of HRC (the Human Rights Campaign), GLAAD... but there are many, many others, too. Along with those organizations come some savvy and tested leaders who have come to understand not only how to change hearts and minds but also legislators and judges votes.

To parents who find a child's disclosure about sexual or gender identity challenging, I always urge what I'd call "moderated" honesty. If you can't say "I love you," then say something like, "I'm going to need some time to digest this news." Buy time this way. And then think.

I really don't understand how parents can talk about gay couples' PDA as a problem or a transgender teen's suicide and not the fact that too many of our kids are being murdered in the schools and on the streets.

Calling a trans person by their former name is referred to as "deadnaming" and is considered highly offensive to most trans people I know.

What really surprised me was that more than half of all deaths by gunshot are suicides, more than 20,000 a year, about 58 a day.

You know, my goal is not to convince you that I'm right or that you're wrong. About homophobia. Gun violence. Racism. Whatever the issue. I'm really trying hard with you - and others - to have a respectful discussion, debate about these issues.