Celebration: COMING OUT DAY

National Coming Out Day was founded in the United States on October 11, 1988, by Robert Eichberg and Jean O'Leary. The date October 11th was chosen because it is the anniversary of the 1987 National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights.

In the past, people have asked why we need to come out of the closet - Robert Eichberg is quoted to have said

Most people think they don't know anyone gay or lesbian, and in fact, everybody does. It is imperative that we come out and let people know who we are and disabuse them of their fears and stereotypes.

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In an ideal world, we wouldn't have to come out of the closet.

@ LGBTQIA+
are you out of the closet?
when did you come out?
how many people know?
does your family know?
if you're still in the closet, what's keeping you there?

@ Non-LGBTQIA+
has anyone ever come out of the closet to you?
do you consider yourself an ally? if so, how are you at communicating that to your LGBTQIA+ friends n acquaintances?

@ Non-LGBTQIA+

has anyone ever come out of the closet to you?
Actually yeah. Not directly like coming to me and saying "hey, I'm x" but being open and talking about it or I just realized when I saw them with their partners.

do you consider yourself an ally? if so, how are you at communicating that to your LGBTQIA+ friends n acquaintances?
Yeah. I may not get it 100% but I tolerate it and want to understand. I communicate it by being open about it and accepting (or at least by not being mean in the case of acquaintances). And by treating them like I've always treated them because at the end of the day they're the same person who became my friend.

Has anyone ever come out of the closet to you?
Yup. I've had, I think, five people come out to me as either gay or bi on varying occasions. A common trend is surprise at exactly how little I care what sex they're attracted to lmao.

Do you consider yourself an ally? if so, how are you at communicating that to your LGBTQIA+ friends n acquaintances?
Sort of? I clearly have no negative feeling towards the lgbt+ community and I've been known to, on multiple occasions, argue for gay rights or call people out for their bigotry.

I don't know if I'd call myself an ally though. I consider myself a decent human being. I support equal rights and acceptance in general, but I'm completely apathetic as to whatever your sexuality is. In truth, I think the entire process of making a big deal of "coming out" is kinda dumb and it seems stupid to me that there's any societal pressure to do so. Not to mention, counter-intuitive, since it hardly normalises sexualities beyond vanilla heterosexual to make a big song and dance about "hey I like people with the same bits as me" or even "I don't really get the sex thing". Hell, societal pressure to come out is even dangerous potentially. I'd say that stuff like media representation is probably a better way of achieving normalisation.

Note: This doesn't mean I think people should hide their sexualities. It means I don't think there should be a societal pressure to loudly proclaim them if you don't want to and that I think being open about your sexuality can be independent of an active "coming out" process.

@ Non-LGBTQIA+

Has anyone ever come out of the closet to you?
I do remember a very good friend of mine back in middle school (which is like... 9-10 years ago iirc) who came out back at the time. When I knew it was completely new to me and my mind was fully into video games so I didn't really care too much and besides I've never been someone to judge others upon that kind of stuff :P

Do you consider yourself an ally? if so, how are you at communicating that to your LGBTQIA+ friends n acquaintances?
Ehhhhhhhh IDK I'm really bad at considering myself anything to be honest. I respect everyone equally unless you're being a complete arse to me and others. So in a way it does and it doesn't make me an ally?

i came out as trans male almost 8 years now i think? i came out way more than that throughout my life but everyone thought i was joking lol. i dont think a lot of people know, i think i pass as cis enough to just look like a teenage boy... which is cool i guess. but im 25.

the straights said coming out is canceled time to pack ur bags no need to come out anymore

@ LGBTQIA+
Are you out of the closet?
Yes.

When did you come out?
Five years ago.

How many people know?
Everyone that is important to me.

Does your family know?
Yes, my parents found out accidentally and that was pretty bad for a while but it's fine now.

are you out of the closet?
To very few people, yes. I'm still mostly hidden within the closet. There are a lot of people I can't come out to. I live in a rather homophobic and transphobic household. So, it's really hard for me to come out, so I've decided not to my family, for the better benefit of my mental health.

when did you come out?
Well, I came out online a few years ago about being trans, and only more recently irl to a friend.


how many people know?
As I said above, very few people (irl) know, same for my sexuality beforehand.

does your family know?
Nope. And they never will. I don't intend to ever tell them. My sister knows, to an extent, but I'll never bother to tell my parents.