When Jillian Orr walked across the stage to accept her degree in psychology from the Mormon-owned Brigham Young University, she was anxious – and not just with the usual pre-commencement, rest-of-your-life-ahead-of-you jitters.
Orr planned to use her final moments as an undergrad to honor herself and the other LGBTQ students at BYU like her who hadn’t felt comfortable being fully authentic on campus, instead feeling pressured to hide some or all aspects of their LGBTQ identities. In recent years, the school has made clear that it does not embrace gender and sexual diversity.
She took a breath, smiled and opened up her graduation gown to reveal a rainbow Pride flag, which one of her sisters had sewn into the gown’s lining.