“Since coming out, I have been given a platform where I can speak up about trans visibility and trans rights, and I do not take that for granted,” says Kayleigh Scott, a flight attendant and trans activist who works with United Airlines. “I am in a position where I can use my voice, and I do so for those who do not share the same privilege.” Part of that privilege, she tells GO, is working in an environment that is supportive, giving her the opportunity to openly transition. “If I was going to come out, I would do it as a flight attendant where I knew I could do it comfortably, safely, and confidently surrounded by a group that would support me along the way,” she says, noting that it was United’s diversity and inclusion policies — and the support offered through their LGBTQ+ resource group, EQUAL — that convinced her to work for them. Not only did she come out, she also serves as a brand ambassador for the airline, using her platform to provide representation, awareness, and educational opportunities to the company’s more than 80,000 employees. Being an out flight attendant isn’t simply a job for her, she says; it has also given her a voice, a life, and a family — providing her the support she was missing from home. “It’s made me feel like Kayleigh,” she says. For other LGBTQ+ people out there, who might themselves be afraid of coming out, Scott offers this advice: “Your time in the closet can be dark and scary, but it doesn’t have to be. You are seen, you are heard, you are validated. Come out. Be counted. Be uniquely you and do not allow anyone to stop you.” —RK
