Coming out across the decades

As LGBT+ History Month begins, Hanna Hanra meets four people who’ve come out over the last 40 years…

one of the better things about the world we live in today is that it’s becoming easier for gay people to exist. It’s not perfect; being gay is still illegal in 70 countries and LGBTQI inclusivity is still being protested in schools, but there are more TV programmes, adverts, voices and platforms for people who have a niggling question mark about themselves.

Every gay person has their own journey of self-discovery – it may be straightforward, it may be long and emotionally complicated. I was at the end of my twenties when I accepted I was gay. Through a lengthy process of trial and error, and people telling me I was, I eventually had an epiphany. It felt like I’d previously been living by the light of a match, and now the curtains were open – sunlight flooded in. I’d buried my feelings because I lacked both the framework and the courage to say I fancied women. Growing up in the ’90s, being gay didn’t seem a possibility. It was illegal to teach homosexuality in school. ‘Gay’ was a derogatory term. I could list celebrities who were out on one hand.

Thankfully, this is changing. Pride sees LGBTQI people celebrating their sexual identity across the world. Rupaul’s Drag Race has been running for 11 glittery seasons. The Favourite was nominated for eight Oscars. Killing Eve was downloaded more than 2.6 million times in the first 36 hours. Huge conglomerates sponsor Pride, and yes, it can be seen as tokenism, but it carries importance; any small amount of visibility and normalisation is enough for someone, somewhere to feel valued. The world was built for straight people. Being gay or queer isn’t a choice, but coming out is and, by doing so, we are slowly building a world where no one lives the minor tragedy of not being able to be proud or, at least, comfortable, with who they are.