Gay bullying is an issue that has recently made headlines.

Those who have come out have been faced with severe discrimination.

Despite that some have faced negative results, there are some who are still willing to speak out.

DVC student Manalo Ilog is one of those students.

“The hardest part of coming out was worrying about what others think,” Ilog said.

As a bisexual student, he has made it one of his goals to make people aware that people who are gay, lesbian or bi are not different from heterosexuals.

Ilog is currently in his third semester at DVC.

He plans to transfer and major in culinary arts.

To anyone else passing him in a hallway, he’s just another student.

Those who know him, though, have realized he is much more.

 The bullying of homosexuals is a topic some aren’t open with discussing. Ilog, however, is comfortable with the subject; as long as he gets his message across.

“When it comes to bullies,” Ilog said. “We want them to know that we’re people too. We’re not that different.”

When he was younger, Ilog had a sense that he wasn’t straight.

Though girls followed him around in middle school, Ilog said he was never interested in any of them.

In 9th grade, people suspected he was gay and the harassment started.

Ilog was called names including ‘gaysian’ and ‘homo.’

He was even beaten up a few times as a result of their assumptions.

It wasn’t until 10th grade, when he fell for a girl, that Ilog realized he was bi.

Although he tried to come out during this time, he found it difficult.

It wasn’t until Ilog started attending DVC and joined the Queer Straight Alliance on campus that he began to feel comfortable.

He initially told them he was straight.

“I went with this girl I knew,” Ilog said. “I was always following her around. I actually didn’t know she was a lesbian before that.”

After the first few weeks, someone in the club had mentioned they were bi.

He later admitted to that same person that he was bi as well.

Following, he told the girl who he first went with. Finally, he told the club.

“Before coming out, I always felt a heavy weight, like I was hiding something, which I was,” Ilog said. “Afterwards, I felt less pain.”

Though he came out to the club, it took longer to come out to his parents; they’ve known for about a month.

“My mom is accepting,” Ilog said. “My dad is trying to accept it. He is trying to piece it together.”

Ilog is the first in his family that isn’t straight.

Ilog said he is trying to stress to both his parents that being bi doesn’t make him any different as a person.

“We just happen to have a physical attraction to the same gender,” Ilog said. “It’s not necessarily an emotional attraction. Other than that we are the same.”

Those who know Ilog have found him to be an asset to the club. Lisa Orta, who has been an advisor for a couple of years, met Ilog when he joined.

“He helps keep everyone upbeat,” Orta said. “He contributes a lot of enthusiasm and creativity.”

Nick Holmes, who is another member of the club, also finds Ilog to be inspirational.

“I’ve really come to admire how comfortable he is with himself,” Holmes said. “He’s definitely come out of his shell since he’s been involved in this club.”

Ilog wants those struggling with coming out to know that they aren’t alone.

“The biggest lesson I’ve learned is that there are more people like me in the world than I thought,” Ilog said.  “I know people are struggling with who they are, but I would tell them not to hide. There are other people who understand what they are going through.”

Staff writer John Kesler contributed to this article.