The rural Southern town of Hulbert, Oklahoma, boasts a population of about 590 people, and over 60 percent of its voters chose to elect Donald Trump as president. By all accounts, this region of the country seems like the last place you’d expect to see any sort of representation of LGBTQ pride.
But one straight man’s pickup truck has gone viral for its decorated tailgate, voicing his support for pride month and featuring the colors of the pride flag, LGBTQ Nation reported.
Oklahoma has a bad reputation for being conservative and close minded.
Last year, the state passed a bill which allowed same-sex couples looking to adopt to be discriminated against.
But in fact, a 2000 US census found that Oklahoma boasts at least 8,200 same-sex couples, and Hulbert’s neighboring region of Cherokee reported 24 same-sex couples.
Cody Barlow is a straight man who has lived in Oklahoma his entire life.
He’s the typical country guy, participating in such activities as mudding, fishing, and spending time floating in the lake. On the surface, it would be easy to write him off as just another rural guy. But in fact, he’s made it known that he is a big supporter of LGBTQ pride in the best way possible.
Barlow recently posted a photo of his black pickup truck and its newly-added decorations.
The photo, which he shared to his Facebook , showed off the brightly colored tailgate resembling the pride flag, a look which he explained he achieved by using colored duct tape.
Accompanying the stripes are two phrases: “Not all country boys are bigots” and below that, “HappyPride Month”.
“Obviously doing this isn’t going to change the minds of those who are intolerant, but hopefully it can help drown out the hatred with love.”
In his post, Barlow wrote that it was important to him to find a way to show that he supports LGBTQ people, not just because he has people close to him who identify this way, but because he knows there are those out there who have dealt with hatred all their lives.
Barlow said that despite the reaction his truck is sure to get from locals, he plans on keeping the decorations up for the entire month of June.
“It doesn’t matter what negativity I receive for supporting this,” he wrote. “I hope that this can help even the slightest bit to encourage and support at least one person that needs it.”
“I hope everyone finds their inner strength to finally live life loud and proud without regard for the negativity of ignorant people.”
The Facebook post, which Barlow made on June 6, currently has over 100,000 reactions, and has been shared by over 65,000 people.
In the comments, people are expressing their gratitude for Barlow’s support and are praising him for his efforts to make that support known.
“We need more beautiful humans like you, sir,” one person wrote, while another chimed in with, “This man needs to be celebrated for his bravery and support.”
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Some members of the LGBTQ community also commented on the post.
One person shared that he respects straight allies, particularly those from the South, and told Barlow, “I know, for certain, that you are helping some kid or adult by telling them that they’re valued and that you have their back. And they’ll have yours.”
h/t: LGBTQ Nation
