Inclusion

I didn't watch the Golden Globes - I'm not much into award shows, but I did see some of Jodie Foster's life time achievement award speech. 

Did she "officially" come out?  I'm not sure.... Did she need to "officially" come out?  I'm pretty sure she didn't.  I know that at different points in time, I needed to know that other queers were out there in the world; what's different now, is that knowing seems to have become an obligation for famous (or infamous) gays and lesbians. 

I'm out, pretty much everywhere, but I've stopped coming out.  I mention my partner by her name and tell people who ask once they realise I'm referring to a woman as my spouse, but I don't "COME OUT" anymore.   I'm living my life, not participating in a 'lifestyle'.

Every time I think that people should be out and open I read something in the news that makes me wonder if we're as far ahead as I think. 

Brett Easton Ellis slammed Matt Bomer's inclusion on the list of actors to play the aggressively heterosexual and abusive Christian Gray from the soft core porn hit books saying, "it's ludicrous... Matt Bomer isn't right for Christian Grey because he is openly gay. He's great for other roles but this is too big a game.’

I don't think much of BEE but he has brought something out into the open that I know people think about.  No matter how far we've come, being gay, lesbian, bisexual is still an issue.  People say things like, "Should homosexuals be allowed to teach, allowed to have children, be police officers, get married, play heterosexuals on TV...." blah, blah, blah....

There are people in the world who choose not to come out, to change pronouns and be secretive because they're legitimately afraid of the consequences of being open.  A teacher in my daughter's school came out to my partner and I because we're safe.  He's on the anti-homophobia committee for our school board but not out at school because he's worried about being able to teach in a junior public school if he's out.

In the end, I ask myself more questions than I answer at times like this.   This isn't a scholarly opinion, it's just my experience. 

I wonder what BEE would say if Chas Bono wanted to read for the part of Christian Gray?