Every year on 25 August Wear it Purple Day is a time to encourage our communities LGBTIA+ youth and allies to embrace who they are.

In Coonamble, students and staff from Coonamble High School had the chance to hear the story of Dianne Harris, who travelled from Willow Tree, an hour south of Tamworth, to speak about her journey.

Around fifty students gathered in the Multi-Purpose Centre to listen to her story.

Dianne grew up as the eldest son of a dairy farmer in Willow Tree, but from a young age always knew she was meant to be a woman.

“I’ve known since I was five,” said Ms Harris. “But back when I was growing up, no one talked about it.”

Dianne spoke about her struggles growing up and not being able to share her truth with her family, friends, or community.

“I was identifiable as a male, and I was friends with boys, because boys were friends with boys and girls were friends with girls.

“Back then if I had come out I would have been taken to a mental institution and been converted to stop me from thinking I wasn’t male.

“So I kept my secret all the way through, and I was isolated.”

Dianne left school in year ten to work on the family farm, married a woman and had children.

“In the end I just worked to deal with my gender dysmorphia,” said Ms Harris. “I’d work fourteen hours, go to bed, and do it all again the next day.

“We had children and I didn’t want them to get picked on at school so I continued to hide my secret.”

However, it soon reached a boiling point.

“It got to a point when I couldn’t do it anymore, I had two options, to be true to myself or to end my life.

“I chose to be my true self, and my life has changed so much for the better.

“I realised that all that time I was in a prison.”

Since transitioning, Dianne is still working long days on the farm in Willow Tree, and is now the President of Tamworth’s Pride Committee and has also featured on the ABC program, ‘Better Date than Never’.

“People need to understand that it’s not a choice, it’s just how I was born,” said Ms Harris.

“It’s not unlike your eye colour or how tall you, you can’t change those things.

“But what you are doesn’t change who you are.”

The theme for this year’s Wear it Purple Day is ‘Write Your Story’.

“Storytelling is a powerful mechanism to drive visibility and connection, build communities and create acceptance,” said Wear it Purple Day President, Lara Husselbee.

“At Wear it Purple we believe strongly that by providing space and visibility for these stories, from our LGBTQIA+ youth, lives can change and we can move societies to take action.”

Victoria Adams from the Youth Action Council says this year’s theme is a chance for young people around Australia to take ownership over their story.

“In a world where social media, the media and our education system often creates pressure to conform to norms, broke structures and set standard,” said Ms Adams.

“The ‘Write Your Story’ these encourages young people to embrace their unique perspectives and to share their stories with others.

“For young people who identify as LGBTQIA+, the theme represents the importance of taking ownership of their narratives and to share their experiences in their own voices.”