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  • LGBTQ Life

Sean Hayes comes out: ‘I am who I am’

It’s been four years since Will & Grace ended it’s eight year run on NBC, and now Sean Hayes, who played gay sidekick “Jack McFarland,” finally reveals he is gay, in what the Advocate calls “the interview you’ve waited 12 years to read.”

And while Hayes finally opens up, he never quite gives a “Yes, I’m gay” soundbite.

“I am who I am,” Hayes told the Advocate. “I was never in, as they say. Never.”

But offering a few choice words for the gay press, including The Advocate — which long criticized his silence — Hayes dismisses any notion that he should have come out sooner.

“Nobody owes anything to anybody,” he says. “You are your authentic self to whom and when you choose to be, and if you don’t know somebody, then why would you explain to them how you live your life?”

(more…)

Tagged with: AdvocateComing OutSean HayesWill & Grace
 

Barr

In a post on her blog Thursday, outspoken comedian Roseanne Barr has pulled no punches in her comments on the recent suicide of Marie Osmond’s son, Michael Bryan (a.k.a. Blosil), saying it had nothing to do with depression, and everything to do with the Mormon church’s position on homosexuality.

Writes Barr:

Marie Osmond’s poor gay son killed himself … because he had been told how wrong and how sick he was every day of his life by his church and the people in it. Calling that “depression” is a lie!

Yet the Osmonds still talk lovingly about their church, saying nothing about its extremely anti-gay Crusade. Marie also has a gay daughter! Hey, I want her and all the gay kids in the world to know that they are just fine being gay and that they deserve love and respect instead of insults and rebuke! I have gay people in my family and my circle of friends and I am kicking bigot ass and taking names!

Barr adds that she knows so many Mormon kids who were gay and committed suicide, and that she “just cannot and will not stay quiet in order to not offend bigots anymore. It is all so terribly depressing.” (more…)

Radcliffe

Daniel Radcliffe is hoping to stamp out homophobia by starring in a new campaign encouraging tolerance for all sexual orientations.

The Harry Potter star has filmed a public service announcement (PSA) on behalf of the Trevor Project, the leading organization focusing on suicide prevention efforts among gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered youth.

And the actor admits he was inspired to take a stand after coming across intolerant people for the first time as a teen, after growing up with several gay friends.

“I grew up knowing a lot of gay men, and it was never something that I even thought twice about – that some men were gay and some weren’t.

“And then I went to school and (for) the first time, I came across homophobia. I had never encountered it before. It shocked me,” Radcliffe said Friday.

“I have always hated anybody who is not tolerant of gay men or lesbians or bisexuals. Now I am in the very fortunate position where I can actually help or do something about it.” (more…)

Tagged with: Daniel RadcliffeTrevor Project
 

Clay Aiken to speak at hometown gay rights event

Aiken

More than a year after disclosing he is gay, Clay Aiken is speaking before a gay-rights event in his hometown of Raleigh, NC, reports the Raleigh News & Observer.

This weekend, he will speak as part of the Human Rights Campaign Carolinas gala at the Raleigh Convention Center.

HRC provided a speechwriter to help Aiken, 31, with his remarks, but he decided to write his own. The original speech was too political, Aiken said, and included a slam aimed at George W. Bush.

“I don’t feel like this is the place to be horribly politically charged and bash people and talk about the wrongs that have been done,” he said. “My goal is to be hopeful, that it’s time for everyone to have equal rights.” (more…)

Tagged with: Clay AikenGay RightsHRC
 

It should come as no surprise that cities as gay friendly as Vancouver and Whistler would extend that hospitality to this year’s Olympic Games.

The two communities are the first Olympic hosts to with Pride Houses to welcome gay and lesbian athletes and tourists and educate Olympic visitors about diversity and the LGBTQ community.

Vancouver’s Pride House is an inclusive pavilion for members and allies of the gay community, and the first of its kind in Olympic history. (more…)