Guest Opinion | Celebrating National Coming Out Day

||| FROM JUSTIN PAULSEN |||

First celebrated in the United States in 1988, National Coming Out Day (NCOD) is an annual LGBTQ awareness day observed each October 11th to support anyone “coming out of the closet”.  The day recognizes the first anniversary of the historic 1987 LGBTQ March on Washington, and is based on the idea that all individuals benefit when those who have been forced to live a life inconsistent with their true-selves are able to be out to family, friends, and colleagues, and live life as an openly LGBTQIA+ person. Homophobia and transphobia thrive in an atmosphere of silence and ignorance and NCOD recognizes that when people know that they have loved ones who are LGBTQIA+, they are far less likely to maintain oppressive views.  

NCOD also recognizes that for many, “coming out” is a deeply personal decision and that for them, while it may not be a step that they are currently prepared to take, knowing that there are active supports in the community is valuable and beneficial to their mental and physical health. This day serves as an opportunity for all of us to recognize that all members of the LGBTQIA+ community are our family, friends, and neighbors. We rely on them and they have the right to rely on us as allies to protect, defend, and care about and for them.

As leader and community member of San Juan County, I recognize and value the right of everyone to live and express their similarities and differences and to do so with an expectation of respect and representation. To this end, I fully support NCOD as an important marker in time for many in our LGBTQIA+ community—especially at a time when ignorance and misinformation have negatively affected their lives and wellbeing.

On this National Coming Out Day, I encourage all county residents to support their LGBTQIA+ family members, friends, and colleagues to live their truest best selves, as we all should.