JJ Johnson
Bio: JJ (they/them) came of age in Colorado Springs, CO in the early 1990s as many conservative Christian Family Organizations took up residence there. JJ knew they were queer from a young age but sought “healing” through becoming an evangelical Christian leader, participating in conversion therapy, and repeating a cycle of shame, repentance, confession, and “restoration”, while feeling divided in half. In 2018, JJ awoke to realize that this way of life was dishonest and was not allowing them to thrive as an integrated human created by God. They were expelled from their church in 2019. As a newly liberated joyful, worshipful, colorful, whole human (in lots of therapy), JJ now works with others in Chicago creating authentic communities of belonging, curating spaces of joy and healing, and finding ways to “tell the truth about ourselves”. JJ holds a PhD in Genetics, loves parenting a 10-year-old son, and is passionately questioning the Bible, learning embodiment, and creating healing artwork.