For National Coming Out Day, the Human Rights Campaign is urging allies to sign a “Coming Out Against Hate” and has released three new coming-out guides, each focusing on a specific ethnic group within the LGBTQ+ community.
“The spirit of National Coming Out Day has always been that the most powerful act of resistance as an LGBTQ+ person is to live our life loudly in a world that tells us to be quiet,” HRC President Kelley Robinson said in a press release. “This sentiment is all the more true as we fight against the hateful legislation that has led to us declaring a State of Emergency for LGBTQ+ Americans. The hard truth is we still live in a world where it is hard for many LGBTQ+ people to come out publicly for fear of interpersonal or institutional harm. For those of us for whom it is safe to come out, it is crucial that we do so vocally and make it clear that we will not stand for anything less than the equality we deserve. This year, we’re asking our allies to make that same pledge and join hands with us in solidarity.” The pledge is available here.
This year, more than 550 anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been introduced in 43 states, and more than 80 have been signed into law — more than doubling last year, which was previously the worst year on record. This led HRC to declare a state of emergency for LGBTQ+ Americans in June. HRC estimates there are more than 20 million LGBTQ+ adults and 2 million LGBTQ+ young people in the U.S.
HRC’s three new coming-out guides are “Coming Out: Living Authentically as Black LGBTQ+ Americans,” “Coming Out: Living Authentically as LGBTQ+ Latine Americans,” and “Coming Out: Living Authentically as LGBTQ+ Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders.” They “dive deep into the issues faced by BIPOC people who wish to come out within their cultural communities” and “celebrate the incredible contributions of BIPOC LGBTQ+ people in history, culture, politics and civil society,” according to HRC’s release. The organization has previously issues coming-out guides for lesbian, gay, and bisexual+ people, for the bisexual+ community, for transgender and nonbinary people, and for allies.
HRC notes that this year’s National Coming Out Day comes one day before the 25th anniversary of the death of Matthew Shepard. Shepard was a 21-year-old University of Wyoming student who was severely beaten by antigay attackers the night of October 6, 1998, and died of his injuries six days later. His parents, Judy and Dennis Shepard, went on to establish the Matthew Shepard Foundation to honor his memory and counter hatred. Among other things, the foundation advocated for national hate-crimes legislation, the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, which was signed into law by President Barack Obama on October 28, 2009.
“Despite the progress made over the preceding decades, the hatred that took Matthew Shepard’s life is on the rise in the country,” HRC’s press release says, pointing out all the anti-LGBTQ+ bills introduced in state legislatures, plus attacks on the community from right-wing members of Congress. “That’s why National Coming Out Day is more important than ever,” the release concludes. “The LGBTQ+ community will never be silenced or erased. Today, and every day, we celebrate the joy and power in living our most authentic selves.”
