252 - Al Cho - Celebrating Queer Life and Family Through the Lens of Intersectional Identities

May 29

“What we don't talk about is that the majority of people who go through trauma and crisis will recover. They will adapt to their situations, and there's many paths to doing that.” - Al Cho

It’s easy to forget that siblings have stories uniquely their own. They may share similar childhood memories as you––same schools, same absurd family holidays––but their narratives will differ wildly. Blended families, like Anne’s, hold an added layer of complexity. How lucky for us that she and her step-sibling Al Cho, MSW, agreed to record this fascinating chat for family posterity. Their conversation highlights the very best of familial support. It also reminds us that even the most connected kin can’t completely insulate us from life’s challenges or the healing work that’s meant for us.

Al is a co-investigator on LGBTQIA2S+ aging and advocacy based in Columbus, OH, where they develop intergenerational programming focused on arts and resilience. They also contribute to advocacy efforts on trans aging and long-term care facilities and creating equitable aging environments for African American older adults. Anne and Al share an ability to hold younger versions of themselves in loving gratitude, a skill we should all try to emulate.

Much of Al's work incorporates their intersecting identities as a transmasculine person of Asian descent. “It compounds and creates a narrative that formed my life in a lot of ways,” they explain. “I would note, too, the social stereotyping. We tend to truly emasculate Asian men.” Al also received the converse of that stereotype: the hypersexualizing of Asian girls, the identity by which they were raised. “This brings in the concept of being of two worlds,” Al says. Their ways of being, whether neurodivergent, transgender, or as one of few Asian kids in a predominantly white school system, shaped their life for better and worse. “Otherness, no matter where you are, will create barriers and some limitations.”

Otherness also bonds Al to communities that are overflowing with the most beautiful, deliberate living and intergenerational healing. The connection offers an opportunity to create a viable, visible future for generations of LGBTQIA2S+ folks while honoring the queer elders. “I look at all the work they did to make our lives possible,” Al says. “I get this joy that they've seen the way their load has lightened over the years.

Anne wins this round of best sibling!

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Al Cho (he/they) is an MSW and a co-investigator on LGBTQIA2+ aging and advocacy in Columbus, Ohio. He develops intergenerational LGBTQIA2+ programming focused on arts & resilience and contributes to advocacy efforts on trans aging in long-term care facilities and creating equitable aging environments for African American older adults.

AL would like to extend his heartfelt gratitude to the Age Friendly Innovation Center, Dr. Holly Dabelko-Schoeny, and Christine Happel. Their invaluable support, guidance, and expertise have been instrumental throughout his research process.

The Age Friendly Innovation Center has been a beacon of knowledge and innovation, helping to navigate the complexities of aging through advocacy, research, and interventions. Christine Happel, in particular, has been an incredible partner, offering their guidance, encouragement, and deep understanding of the field.

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