Tanya Compas

The youth worker and activist spreading LGBTQ+ love through humanity and humility.

Tanya Compas introduces herself as a youth worker, but she’s become much more than that. The 28-year-old has become a symbol of dynamic, powerful grassroot change; change that has been long overdue. Sat in a vibrantly queer North London studio, Tanya opens up to GAY TIMES about her frustrations with performative activism, the barriers Black LGBTQ+ people face, and how we can all champion minority voices.

“I’ve worked in the charity sector with young people for the past seven years now. I’ve also been using social media to share things that bring me a greater understanding of life, sexuality, gender, and myself,” Tanya begins. “It was from working with young people that I really began to recognise myself. It was then that I realised that I’m not straight, but I’m queer.” Through her work with LGBTQ+ youth, Tanya admits she became more self-aware of her own identity. “I’ve been out for a couple of years now and I moved back to my family home and I didn’t quite realise what moving home would mean. It was the first time I was living at home as a queer person,” she explains. “It’s one thing knowing I’m queer and being very separate from my family’s lives, versus me being queer and bringing a girl to stay in my bed. It was hard for my family to know how to be an