By Isabelle Lounsberry
17-year-old Al Smith, a junior here at Apopka High School, is a very active member of both the school and
the LGBT community. Naturally talented in art, academics, and theatre, he has a well-rounded set of skills and interests. Al also has an affinity for psychology, specifically gender therapy and helping those with such problems. Although he may face some challenges, Al is very open about his identity and expression, giving him a unique sense of style and of self.
What are your interests in school?
I do a lot in the drama department. I’m in the play if you want to come see that this week. I’m in the drama club. I’m also in Ro Kappa because I really like history– I’m in two history classes this year. I’m going to try to do debate next year because I like to argue with people *laughs*.
Outside of school?
…I spend a lot of time with my dogs, I have three dogs.
I’ve heard you read quite a bit, what kind of things do you read?
I read a lot of young adult fiction that has LGBT themes, ‘cause that’s what I’m interested in.
So, you’re a bit of an AP Lang superstar, can you explain why you excel so much?
Honestly, I took the class because that’s the next thing up from English 2 and I didn’t want to take English 3 because it’s pretty much the exact same class. I just feel very lucky every time I take multiple choice exams. I never go into it feeling like I know what I’m doing. Writing has always been something that’s come kinda easy to me, but the multiple choice… I just feel very lucky.
Do you succeed like that in other classes?
Usually. There are some classes that I struggle with a bit more– AP Euro has been a little bit hard this year because there’s a lot of reading from the textbook and I’m not always on top of that.
Can you tell me a little bit about yourself?
I am a vegetarian. I kinda like school, I’m having a good time. I’m excited for senior year.
Do you know what college you’re going to?
I don’t know, there are too many options. It’s really overwhelming, I think. I don’t feel like we provide enough support for kids at the school with picking out colleges. I wish that was more focused on. If we really want kids to go to college then we should be pushing them for looking at colleges and what they’re trying to do, and getting them scholarships. I don’t know, it’s scary.
You said you were part of the LGBT community?
I’m a transgender boy, and I am also gay. That’s been a big part of my life since middle school when I started figuring that out. It brought me a lot closer to other people in the community, most of my friends are as well. I’ve gone through a lot because of it, but it’s made me a better person, and more accepting of the people around me. I’m more understanding and willing to learn.
Do you have any advice for people who are coming to their own realizations?
You have a bigger community than you think you do, and the internet is a really great resource. For some reason when I was figuring it out I was just sat in my room thinking, “What’s happening,” instead of looking things up. So do that. Check out resources online. We have a GSA at our school which is run by some of my friends, and it’s a safe place to go if you’re confused and are looking for people to support you.
Can you explain your goals in life?
I think my biggest goal right now is what I want to do in my career. I want to be a psychologist, but I specifically want to be a gender therapist, or at least specialize in LGBT children, because there’s not a lot of support for those people in the psychiatric community, and a lot of times they’re misunderstood. I’ve heard a lot of horror stories from trans[gender] people trying to get their letter for their hormones or surgery, and, instead, they get told that they’re not even trans[gender] rather than the person just listening to them, and I want to be a person who can support these people and get them what they need and the resources that they need. I also really—I don’t know how I would do this but I really want to make it so that you have to be licensed to call yourself a gender therapist. Right now, if you’re a licensed psychologist, you can just call yourself a gender therapist, even if you know nothing about trans[gender] people That’s really dangerous because people who have really bad opinions about that stuff will, in fact, make things worse.