[TRANSCRIPT]

Melissa Yingst Huber

Cesar L. Baquerizo is a 30-year-old Latino deaf and gay author who grew up in Ecuador in South America. Being a part in the LGBT community encouraged him to write his debut novel called A Safe Place With You.

A Safe Place With You is a fiction novel set in Ecuador, but it is inspired by real life events. It’s about a young man named Tomas Diaz and his friends who are surrounded by hate and ignorance toward the LGBT community. They’re sent to a clinic called “Grow and Live Normally”, a place to “cure” homosexuality. After going through emotional and physical trauma, Diaz and his friends work together to fight for who they are. Writing this book was personal for Cesar as he went through a time of struggle.

Writing this book it really helped me to accomplish my biggest dream to make a big difference that can give inspiration to young gay people who are probably right now, in this moment suffering and struggling the same or similar situation where I felt alone, weak, (useless) where I asked myself; What about me? And the fear that nobody will understand or accept for how I identify myself. This book is my living proof to be able to say: “Don’t worry, stay strong, it’s only time that you will find a safe place with you.”

Today in the United States, only 4 states: California, Oregon, Illinois, New Jersey, and Washington, D.C. ban the practice of gay therapy conversion to youth LGBTQ under 18. Which means that there is not protection law in 46 states where an estimated 77% of LGBT population lives according the research source from the Movement Advancement Project.

Cesar created this book because he wanted to create something different, special, and to help change the world.

The differences that we have inside or outside of us is not a reason to promote that hate in us and much less to be afraid of us. We are humans being and they need to face the reality that we live in a world that is diversity, we have different languages, we have different cultures, we have different genders, we have different ethnics, we have different customs, and so many things. Why the sexuality can’t be seen as part of the human particularities? We were born free with the same rights in the same world. So Equality is something we all deserve and must be demanded for all of us. I hope to spread that message.

A Safe Place With You, will be on sale on June 14 of this year at all online retail stores, including Amazon. For more information on his USA book tour, visit his Twitters, @cesarluisb and @asafeplacewithu, as well as his Facebook fan page, facebook.com/asafeplacewithyou.