Chann first started writing down his story when he attended a rally in 2014 to oppose cuts to general assistance. Born into a Cambodian refugee family, Chann said he was struck by the shortsightedness of the proposed policy change as someone whose family relied on support to get by. 

In the eight years that followed, Chann expanded his writing to capture his broader, now-published life story — one that also includes coming out as a gay man to the evangelical, white working class family in Maine he was later adopted into and finding a way to still be a family even though they disagreed on many issues. 

One of the reasons Chann got into politics was because he wants to use his personal experience to help more people who disagree work together. 

“The world is not so black and white and we need to be comfortable working in the gray,” Chann said. 

READ MORE: https://mainemorningstar.com/2024/07/31/maines-democratic-delegates-bringing-strong-lgbtq-representation-to-national-convention/