in june 2019, to mark the 50th anniversary of the stonewall riots, sparking the start of the modern lgbtq rights movement, "queerty" named him one of the pride50 “trailblazing individuals who actively ensure society remains moving towards equality, acceptance and dignity for all queer people". in june 2019 he was also a speaker at fernandina pride parade and festival in fernandina beach, florida. for national coming out day (october 11), his op-ed about his coming out after surviving conversion therapy—where he shared “the worst feeling is hiding who you really are”—was published in "out".