Tag: coming out

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NFL Free Agent Ryan Russell Comes Out As Bisexual

NFLer Ryan Russell comes out as bisexual in an ESPN op-ed Ryan Russell, currently an NFL free agent, hopes to return to the game after missing all of last season with a shoulder injury. But before he begins his journey to redemption, he had a little business to take care of. In a first-person essay for ESPN, Russell has come out as bisexual, writing, “My truth is that I’m a talented football player, a damn good writer, a loving son, an overbearing brother, a caring friend, a loyal lover, and a bisexual man.” “Today, I have two goals: returning to the NFL, and living my life openly,” penned the 6’5″ 267-pound defensive end. “I want to live my dream of playing the game I’ve worked my whole life to play, and being open about the person I’ve always been.” Back in 2015, Russell was a fifth-round draft pick for the Dallas Cowboys. Alas, he only played in a single game for the Cowboys before being traded to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for the 2016 and 2017 seasons. Having missed all of last year’s season, he’s now working to get back in the game. More from his ESPN piece:

Growing up, I always felt as though my existence slipped between the cracks of two worlds.

I wasn’t flamboyant, tidy, or any other stereotypes kids are forced to construct their world around.

I wasn’t straight, hyper-masculine or aggressive; I cried quite a bit, and, as a young black man, I didn’t fit the bill.

I played football — so I put that in the straight column. I wrote poetry and romance stories — so I put that in the gay column.

Over time, I came to build two worlds. There was football, the drive to play at a professional level, a place that catered to my competitive instincts. Football was a world of opportunity where, if I performed well, I could earn a scholarship, support my family and build a life for myself long after I stopped playing.

Then there’s my personal world, which probably isn’t much different from most people who are figuring out who they are in adulthood.

I admire his honesty and authenticity. At this point, the question is, after the Michael Sam / NFL debacle of 2014, can an openly bisexual man return to the game? https://www.instagram.com/p/B1wP7kwgjmQ/

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CrossFit Athlete Comes Out On Social Media

Alec Smith, younger brother of CrossFit Games winner Ben Smith, is not only an athlete in his own right but has made a name for himself outside of his brother’s shadow in the CrossFit games as both an individual and as a part of the team/association CrossFit Krypton. Alec recently came out on Instagram through a video that he captioned, “My coming out story. Honestly one of the hardest things I’ve had to do.” Referencing a line from Lizzo’s hit song, “Truth Hurts,” the hunky athlete added, “Took a DNA test, turns out I’m gay.” “So I’m gay, and I’m at the point at life now where I’m ok with that,” shared Smith. “I’ve accepted it and I’m happy with who I am.”

 

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Took a DNA test, turns out I’m gay 🌈

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“It’s been a struggle, it really has. My whole life, I’ve known that I was different,” he continued. “When I was twelve years old, I knew that I was attracted to guys. And I hated myself for being attracted to guys, which led me to hide who I was. I hid who I was in high school, I hid who I was in college. I found myself playing sports. Doing all these things to distract myself from who I really was. It just got to the point where it was unhealthy and I decided to tell somebody. And after I told one of my closest friends, it just led me to telling more and more of my friends. And truly just talking about it helps so much.” He also had advice for others dealing with the idea of coming out: “When the time is right, the time is right… just focus on yourself and what’s important to you.”

 

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News Round-Up: August 16, 2019

Nick Sandell (via Instagram)

Some news items you might have missed:

• InstaHunks: Hunky fitness model Nick Sandell is ‘catching some rays’ in my native Texas.

• FreeMovement: An immigration judge in the UK has rejected an asylum seeker because the man did not have a gay “demeanor” and did not “look around the room in an effeminate manner.” I kid you not.

• NY Times: The official cause of death for accused sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein was suicide by hanging according to the coroner’s autopsy. The report indicates he tied a bedsheet to the top of a set of bunk beds, then knelt toward the floor with enough force that he broke several bones in his neck.

• Boy Culture: Serious props to Adam Price for this romantic oceanside marriage proposal to his bf, former X Factor contestant Naisa Lasalosi.

• Deseret News: Ed Smart, the father of kidnapping survivor Elizabeth Smart, shared in a Facebook message with family and friends Thursday that he is gay, divorcing his wife and doesn’t see a place for himself in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

• OUT: Disney has announced the leads for its upcoming spin-off of the successful coming-out film, Love, Simon, and neither of the two lead actors are openly gay.

• New Music: Randy Report favorite Mika drops his latest, “Tiny Love,” from his upcoming album My Name Is Michael Holbrook.

“The most important thing in the world is the love we have for those around us, the love others offer us and the love we have for ourselves,” says Mika about the track. “That love can feel so massive and yet at the same time it’s so tiny and imperceivable to others. This song is a conscious decision to provoke that emotion.”

Musically, I like the track – fun melody and the production is rich and sophisticated.

But, every now and then, this happens: I like the song, but in this instance, the music video gets in the way for me. I’m just not vibing with the video.

That said, it’s a fun track. Let me know what you think in the comments.

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Disney Channel Star Joshua Rush Comes Out

Joshua Rush, who played the gay teen ‘Cyrus Goodman’ on the Disney Channel series Andi Mack, just came out as bisexual on his Twitter account Tuesday.
Actor Joshua Rush (image via Instagram)

Joshua Rush, who played the gay teen ‘Cyrus Goodman’ on the Disney Channel series Andi Mack, just came out as bisexual on his Twitter account Tuesday.

Rush gained national attention when his Andi Mack character came out in 2017 becoming the first openly gay Disney Channel character.

In last month’s series finale, his character was revealed to be part of the first gay couple on a Disney series.

Now that the series has wrapped, Rush appears to have had one more ‘coming out’ to do.

On Twitter, the 17-year-old wrote, “First to respond to this tweet is bi.” He quickly followed that with his own response, “First! I win! It’s me. I’m bi.”

He added there were “a few things” he wanted to share with his fans.

The actor told his fans he thought it ‘ironic’ that his TV character’s coming out could send a message of empowerment to young LGBTQs, but until today he hadn’t found the courage to come out himself.

In fact, he says it’s his fans reaction to Cyrus’s journey that inspired him today.

Sharing that he had a close friend come out to him in fifth grade, Rush admitted he “suffered with some level” of his own “internalized homophobia” while playing a gay character on TV.

His solution at the time? “I stuffed the existential crisis of talking about my sexual orientation into a box in my mind for years,” he wrote, adding, “Today, I release it into the world.”

Noting that sexual orientation doesn’t make up “all” of his identity, Rush pointed to bi erasure and the challenges that trans women of color face every day as more pressing issues than his sexual identity.

He asked folks to donate to GLAAD (which promotes positive messaging for LGBTQs in the media) because his Disney Channel series “wouldn’t have existed in the form that it did without them.”

He also gave a shoutout to The Trevor Project, the leading national organization providing crisis intervention to LGBTQ young people, before closing the thread with, “Thank you to you for giving me the courage to know who I am and tell you this today. Happy 20biteen!”

While he hadn’t come out yet, it was just a few weeks ago that Rush shared a photo on Instagram after attending his first Pride event.

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Aquaman Comes Out As Queer In New ‘Young Justice: Outsiders’

(screen capture via Young Justice: Outsiders)

In a new episode of DC Universe’s Young Justice: Outsiders, the character of Aquaman is shown swimming up to his boyfriend Wynnde, a member of the underwater court of King Orion, and delivering a smooch.

The character – whose real name is Kaldur’Ahm – was once known as Aqualad but has since taken up the mantle of Aquaman in the series.

Young Justice, which chronicles the adventures of teenage superheroes and sidekicks, originally ran on Cartoon Network for two seasons from 2010 to 2013 but was cancelled due to low toy sales by partner Mattel.

Fan outcry plus strong viewership on Netflix reruns prompted DC Comics to revive the series this year via its newly-launched streaming platform, DC Universe.

For decades comic books have led the way in terms of LGBTQ representation from the X-Men (whose characters are seen by many as a metaphor for marginalized communities) to the recent announcement that Marvel is looking at “transgender actresses only” to cast a new, upcoming role.

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AGT Judge Julianne Hough: “You Know I’m Not Straight, Right?”

In a new interview for Women’s Health Magazine, DWTS alum/America’s Got Talent judge Julianne Hough shares that she once told her husband, “You know I’m not straight, right?”
Julianne Hough (image via Facebook)

In a new interview for Women’s Health Magazine, DWTS alum/America’s Got Talent judge Julianne Hough shares that she once told her husband, “You know I’m not straight, right?”

The revelation came amid a “massive transformation” period for the 31-year-old actress and dancer just four months after marrying hockey player Brooks Laich in July 2017.

In working to develop her own dance-based workout called Kinrgy (kin as in family and kinesthetic, plus energy), she felt more and more empowered and confident.

Hough says that confidence became transformative and cathartic in her life.

“I’ve been de-layering all the survival tactics I’ve built up my whole life,” she explains. “Now, I feel limitless.”

As her new-found confidence began to permeate other aspects of her life, she wondered if that might be a turn-off for her husband.

“I was connecting to the woman inside that doesn’t need anything, versus the little girl that looked to him to protect me,” Hough tells Women’s Health. “I was like, ‘Is he going to love this version of me?’ But the more I dropped into my most authentic self, the more attracted he was to me. Now we have a more intimate relationship.”

With that deeper intimacy came the courage to share some truths with Brooks.

“I [told him], ‘You know I’m not straight, right?’” says Hough.

“And he was like, ‘I’m sorry, what?’ I was like, ‘I’m not. But I choose to be with you.’”

Audiences have grown to know Hough since she was first cast in 2007 as a professional dancer on Dancing with the Stars. That was followed with the leading role in the 2011 film remake of Footloose.

In 2016, she played Sandy in the live Fox television production of Grease. And in 2019, she joined the reality TV series America’s Got Talent as a judge.

It’s understandable that Hough would have some trepidation about opening up about her sexuality. She and her famous DWTS brother, Derek, were raised in the very anti-LGBTQ Mormon Church in Utah.

But today she finds ’safety’ in living authentically.

“I think there’s a safety with my husband now that I’m unpacking all of this, and there’s no fear of voicing things that I’ve been afraid to admit or that I’ve had shame or guilt about because of what I’ve been told or how I was raised.”

Hough also shares how she got over her fear of being naked as she posed for an extensive nude photo shoot for the ‘Naked Strength’ issue of Women’s Health.

SShe recently joined her hubby Brooks and his co-host Gavin DeGraw on their podcast, How Men Think, to discuss intimacy, sex and more.

“We have never been so specific, detailed and open about exactly what goes on in our relationship and our respective thoughts and approaches to intimacy and sex,” the former Los Angeles King forward told Closer Weekly about the podcast chat.

“We give people our exact specifics, how we create intimacy, why it’s important to us and open up about our sex life.”

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Twitter’s Anonymous Gay Footballer Bails, Deletes Account

(photo by Tevarak Phanduang on Unsplash)

An anonymous Twitter account, which claimed to be run by a champion athlete planning to come out soon, has bailed and deleted his account.

For weeks, the Twitter user told the world they were a gay English Football League player who had just come out their family. Subsequent tweets shared the progress of meetings with the player’s coaches and management.

“I’m a professional footballer, playing for a club in the @SkyBetChamp. I will be revealing my identity soon, but I am a proud gay man, hoping to break the mould. I am under the age of 23, and today I came out to my family. Soon, I will come out publicly. … Today I came out to my family. I have hid my sexuality for far too long. My family responded amazingly well, and other than a few close friends, they were the first to know.”

On July 15, the Twitter user wrote that he had come out to his football club and was planning on coming out to the world “prior to the start of the new season.”

“I am thinking of those involved in professional football who are similarly positioned,” the poster added. “My hope is that they can take comfort and hope from such disclosure and can feel suitably empowered to, if desirable, reach the same decision.”

The user had previously announced they would be publicly coming out tomorrow, July 24.

There’s no proof the person running the account was an actual athlete.

Earlier today, all the tweets on the account had disappeared and in their place were two tweets.

The first read, “I thought I was was stronger. I was wrong.”

The second added, “I’m not strong enough to do this.”

The tweets ended with, “This isn’t a hoax. I wouldn’t do that.”

And shortly thereafter, the account was deleted.

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Shawn Mendes Catches Flack For Declining To Help Young Fan Come Out To Parents

Shawn Mendes (image via Instagram)

Pop star Shawn Mendes is catching some flack on the interwebs after a fan asks him to help here come out to her parents.

During a July 14 Q&A in Oakland, California, a fan asked if Mendes would record a ‘coming out’ video to her parents as she wanted to share with them that she identifies as bisexual.

“I’m bisexual and I haven’t told anybody, but my parents are very strict and I don’t know how to tell them so I was wondering if you could do a little video,” said the fan.

Mendes declined, but for a very good reason.

“This is what I want to tell you, your parents are your parents,” said Mendes. “They’re going to love you no matter what you say, no matter how you say it, no matter how you look when you say it, any time of the day.” 

Unfortunately, that’s not quite true as we know many young people come out as LGBTQ and are often rejected by their families. Many studies show that up to 40% of homeless youth are LGBTQ who were kicked out of their homes after coming out.

“Nothing I say is going to mean anything that is even close to what you saying it means to them,” continued Mendes. “You’re their world. I cannot possibly come close to the amount of joy and happiness that they’re going to feel when they find out that you’re telling them your truth and your honesty.” 

He added, “I would if I thought that it was a better thing to do, but I know in my heart that it’s not. I know your parents are going to love you even more for being honest with them.”
Some folks felt Mendes appears out of touch for his complete confidence that all will be well for the young girl. But that’s what comes from a straight person who’s never had to face the reality of coming out.

But at the end of the day, coming out really is one of the most personal and empowering acts an LGBTQ person will ever do for themselves. Asking a young pop star to put a ‘seal of approval’ on the girl’s coming out isn’t likely to impact the parents.

“Hey – your kid is bisexual! Have a great day!”

I appreciate that Mendes seemed genuine and sincere in his response, and recognized the personal nature of coming out. 

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Teen’s Heartbreaking Letter To Homophobic Parents Goes Viral

Kent Mendez (image via Instagram)

A gay teen shared a heartbreaking note he left his parents explaining why he had to leave home after they rejected him for coming out as gay.

The letter, penned by 19-year-old Kent Mendez, was shared on Twitter Monday and quickly went viral. At this writing, the post has been retweeted 15,000 times.

“There hasn’t been a day where I haven’t cried or struggled to find the energy to get out of bed,” begins Mendez. “This doesn’t feel like a home and I don’t think it ever will.”

“You have accused me of being a bad person, of being an embarrassment, and telling me I have a psychological disorder,” he continues. “I don’t think you guys will ever understand what it’s like to hear that from your own parents and how harmful and damaging it is to a child.”

Mendez goes on to share the ways his parents “used money” to “control” and “suppress who I am,” from forcing him to choose between his happiness or his education to forcing him to watch videos “to make me feel ashamed of who I am and who I love.”

“The other day you asked me what parents were for: Parents are supposed to love an accept their children unconditionally,” writes the teen in one of the most affecting passages. “That’s all I asked for but sadly I guess I asked for too much.”

After detailing his journey of self-acceptance, he tells his parents, “I refuse to live a lie, not for you or anyone.”

He closes the note writing, “I’m leaving because I refuse to become another statistic.”

The response on Twitter has been overwhelmingly positive.

He followed up by telling his Twitter followers, “I’m not sharing this for pity or for attention, but because I know there are people out there just like me who are scared and stuck in abusive homes and I want to be an example that you’re never stuck and that there is a light at the end of the tunnel.”

He also shares that he’s currently living with a friend, adding, “As f*cked up my life is right now I’m glad I’m finally in a place where I can laugh and crack jokes again.”

Tuesday morning, Mendez tweeted that his parents hadn’t contacted him since he left home.

He has launched a crowd-funding campaign to help him get through school.

On the GoFundMe campaign page, he explains he “made the decision to leave a very toxic environment for the sake of my mental health and happiness.”

His goal, for now, is to “at least attend community college and be able to get back on my feet.”

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‘Fuller House’ Star Juan Pablo Di Pace Comes Out

Juan Pablo Di Pace (image via Instagram)

Juan Pablo Di Pace, one of the stars of Netflix’s Fuller House, recently came out as gay during a TedX event in the Netherlands.

Di Pace (Mamma Mia!, AD The Bible Continues, Dallas and Camp) spoke to the audience about growing up in Argentina and how, as a small boy, he realized he enjoyed playing with girls instead of boys.

Until one day, he heard a word for the first time in first grade.

“It started like thunder that got closer and louder to me as it exploded like egg in my face: maricón or f*gg*t.”

He admits he didn’t really know the word, but it came to represent a big part of his own internal dialogue.

Describing his younger self as “this sad kid who suffered,” Di Pace shares he found solace in learning to sketch and draw because “it was the only thing my bullies could not fight against.”

He soon came to regard drawing as his ‘super power,’ because it helped create some sense of respect or acceptance from his bullies. And he loved it.

“I wanted more,” he told the crowd. “I became an addict of acceptance.”

So, as puberty hit him and his school mates, he decided to use his drawing skills to create animated cartoon porn. And again, he found acceptance.

“Acceptance was my fuel, and when that is the case, like an addict, you do whatever it takes to get a fix,” he said.

“In order to please others – what do you do?” he asked the crowd. “You change.”

“I figured, if I changed my f*gg*t self, I could be in,” Di Pace admitted. “I hated that word so much I spent years perfecting myself to become a very convincing little actor.”

A post shared by Juan Pablo Di Pace (@juanpablodipace) on May 3, 2019 at 4:16pm PDT

In a stroke of luck, he scored a two-year scholarship to the United World College in Italy, where he was able to “befriend other ‘freaks’ like me – it was beautiful!”

It was there that he first stepped on a stage. Singing the opening notes of “Summer Lovin’” from GREASE, he had an epiphany (“It felt amazing!”) becoming an addict of something new: Applause.

That addiction would take him to London where he would begin his professional performing career, first as a dancer (which included an early gig as a naked extra in an opera) and then later as an actor.

It wasn’t until he was offered “the role of a lifetime – Jesus Christ,” in the TV series AD The Bible Continues, that he finally came to terms with his sexuality.

“So, there I am, hanging on the cross…in Morocco…and I look up at the sky, and I think, ‘You could still strike me down with lightning. Are you sure you want me to play your son? Me?’”

He waited for a response. But, instead he experienced “an overwhelming feeling of love and acceptance and freedom that I could never even put into words.”

“A message from God?,” he thought. “Maybe.”

“Words are like universes, and we are magicians who can create universes with them,” he added. “When you’re aware that you’re screwing up your own movie, change it.”

Since 2016, Di Pace has played the role of ‘Fernando’ in the Netflix reboot of Full House.

The farewell season of Fuller House will be released this fall.

He sings and dances, too!