Call me by my name: whether writing a headline or creating a poll, we're always debating how best to show respect for all our readers. It's a challenge we're privileged to accept.

You, our readers are quick to let us know when you feel you're being underrepresented in our pages. If you don't see your image in a particular issue you may worry that we'll disregard you in the future. That's understandable. After all, 40 years ago gay men created The Advocate in response to oppression directly aimed at them. The "LBT" letters had yet to be added to our movement's official roster. All of us were already here, of course, fighting for our rights and living remarkable lives in the bargain. But we didn't yet claim our kinship as one community.

The Advocate has changed with the times--and gladly. During this anniversary year we've traced our evolution from a newspaper for gay men (complete with personals ads) to the national gay and lesbian newsmagazine and beyond. Today, we claim our place as the LGBT leader, created by and for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, intersex, genderqueer, questioning, and yes, heterosexual readers--everyone sharp enough to enjoy sitting down with a great magazine.

In practice this means that, along with our coverage of your specific stories, your Advocate usually contains at least some content that asks you to look beyond your own letter in the LGBT mix. When we ask you to take that journey with us, you may find yourself wondering, When is it my turn? Is The Advocate still interested in me? Some of you measure our commitment to you in pages: If we devote most of an issue to one particular story, you may worry that we've overlooked a narrative closer to your own. Less attractively, a few of you write, "What are all these [fill in the group] people doing in my magazine?"

We want to tell you plainly: Throughout our editorial year we strive to tell all the stories that affect you most. If we offer a transgender story in one issue, you can look forward to a lesbian or gay or bisexual story in the next. We do our best to show our respect for you--to refer to you in the terms you choose, to avoid the cliches and stereotypes you dislike. If we fall short, we ask you to correct us. When we get it right, we so appreciate your letting us know.

We are biased to this extent: We believe that LGBT people are the most fascinating in the world. I fall the gains of the past 40 years were suddenly reversed and we were once more a publication for gay men only, we would be brilliant, entertaining, and sophisticated. But we would also know what a wide, wonderful world we were missing. We prefer it this way.