State senator turns personal pain into strength
MILAN SIMONICH
Ringside Seat
Posted: Sunday, August 31, 2014 7:00 pm | Updated: 8:49 am, Tue Sep 2, 2014.
State Sen. Jacob Candelaria never was just one of the guys.
“I was the chubby, gay kid growing up. I was bullied in middle school,” he said in an interview, explaining how he was called derogatory words.
For Candelaria, that virulent strain of abuse was half a lifetime ago.
Now he is a Princeton graduate, a law student at The University of New Mexico and an excellent orator who commands attention, even though, at 27, he is the youngest member of the state Legislature.
Geared toward intellectual pursuits, Candelaria never had much interest in sports. But he watched intently this holiday weekend as National Football League teams set their rosters. Candelaria was rooting for Michael Sam, the first openly gay player to be drafted by an NFL team, to win a job.
He didn’t. The St. Louis Rams cut Sam, but Candelaria said his tryout was a step forward.
Read more here: http://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/blogs/politics_and_news/state-senator-turns-personal-pain-into-strength/article_2c72239c-d23b-5f05-9192-30a62036b105.html