In case you’ve been staying away from every gay or gossip blog for the past little while, you missed out on a wonderful little occurrence this weekend: both actress Maria Bello and Olympic diver Tom Daley came out of the closet. And neither one of them actually said the word gay, lesbian or bisexual.
Can we talk about this? Because this is pretty cool.
Don’t get me wrong here: labels, when used properly, have their place. People are going to self-identify using whatever terms they feel most comfortable with, and in that regard, it’s not anyone’s business which terms are used and which aren’t.
But seeing two different (and admittedly, rather high-profile) people come out without using labels is rather interesting: it basically says that who you love, who you date, who you fuck . . . understanding those for yourself and being happy with them counts for more than other people’s understanding of your identity.
Or maybe they just figured it would have been overkill. Who knows?
Either way, I think it shows that we’re developing a better understanding of self-identification and terminology and how to apply it properly. Labels should be used to help you understand yourself, rather than for the sake of others.
(And now to bookend this with a gratuitous video of Tom Daley ripping off his clothes. His butt is so tiny! Heeeeeeeeeeeeee!)
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