Rewind just 10 years, and it may have been impossible to imagine so many young stars and public figures coming out, and doing so as early in their careers. Recall that a previous generation of celebrities, from Ricky Martin to Tessa Thompson and Elliot Page, were many years into their public lives before openly identifying as LGBTQ+.
Although clearly inspired by Pride month, this flood of coming-out posts also speaks to broader global and cultural trends.
Results from a new Ipsos survey conducted across 27 countries released this week found that Gen Z is twice as likely as the general population to identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, pansexual, omnisexual, or asexual. Those born after 1997 are also nearly four times as likely as people over 40 to identify as transgender, nonbinary, gender non-conforming, genderfluid, or “in another way.”
Experts have suggested that the growing number of young people identifying as LGBTQ+ reflects increasing visibility and acceptance. “Younger people are growing up in an environment where being gay, lesbian or bisexual is not as taboo as it was in the past,” Gallup editor Jeffrey Jones told NBC News with regards to a similar survey released earlier this year.
Queer visibility seems to grow exponentially every time a celebrity or public figure with legions of followers on social media decides to open up about their identity. Though it may be easy to overlook the significance of such revelations when there seems to be such a bounty of them, the cumulative effect of these coming out announcements is incalculable. Every person who comes out — famous or otherwise — sets an example for what’s possible.
For anyone else who wants to taste the double dose of queer joy that is coming out during Pride month, we’ve still got 20 days left.
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