Dear NY Times
This is in response to an article in the Sunday Styles section from Sunday, May 23.
“…there is a growing sense that a celebrity coming out sways few hearts and minds and does relatively little to alter negative perceptions about gay people.”
There is a rather subversive implication in this sentence: that only straight people are affected when a celebrity comes out of the closet. The implication is that gay people, specifically young gay people, either don’t exist, aren’t paying attention or don’t have negative feelings about who they are. There are countless gay youth who are watching Ricky Martin’s (admittedly late) coming out ~ who are watching Chely Wright or Sean Hayes. For many of these kids, these celebrities are a lifeline. A hope.
This country has come a very long way in a very short time. But let’s not pretend that we don’t have a great deal of distance yet to cover. Violence against the LGBT community continues to stagger the heart and the mind in its regularity and level of intensity. Kids are still being thrown out of their homes or sent into ex-gay therapy (courtesy of the onetime famous, now infamous Dr. Rekers) only to be tortured into denying who they are.
Every person’s coming out is important. Every single person’s coming out is important. Whether that be on a personal level or through the media is irrelevant. While some might argue that stars are cowardly not to come out in the prime of their careers (an argument I would agree with), I would never diminish the importance of anyone’s coming out, at any point, for any reason.
October 11, National Coming Out Day, has, perhaps, “lost some of its potency.” Good.
Less potent, however, does not necessarily equal less important. It is still the single most important step we, as gay men and women, can take in terms of living honest, happy lives. It is also the single most important step we can take in terms of changing the political and cultural landscape of our country. We are, quite simply, everywhere. We are every race. Every walk of life. Every religion. Every strata of class and education. Partaking in every profession. The ability to hide in a hostile world has, until recently, rendered us invisible. It is that invisibility that has often facilitated our survival. It is also that invisibility that has made it so easy to hate us. Lie about us. Torture us. And kill us.
When someone, anyone, comes out of the closet, someone, somewhere is listening.
Sincerely, Ian
