I Didn't Say It ...

Elton John, honoring Dr. Anthony Fauci on World AIDS Day for his early work on the global HIV/AIDS crisis and his effort to educate the public on the COVID-19 pandemic:

"What a wonderful and fitting way to mark World AIDS Day, by honoring one of the biggest champions in the history of the AIDS epidemic. "There are very few people on this planet who have dedicated themselves to a lifetime of service to save millions of lives like Dr. Fauci. His unwavering commitment to public health and innovation has transformed the approach to HIV, and it is his leadership and persistence that will ultimately help us overcome the Covid-19 pandemic."

Fauci, the longtime director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, served as the National Institutes of Health's AIDS coordinator before becoming the first director of the NIH's Office of AIDS Research, where he served from 1988 to 1994. He faced protests and condemnation from activists in organizations like the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power [ACT UP] for his handling of the deadly disease as it claimed more than 100,000 lives in the United States, but he would go on to collaborate with activists on research and drug trial development.

Hero. Or Heroes. Elton John deserves heaps of praise for his work rising money for AIDS research.

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Elliot Page, formerly Ellen Page, announcing he is transgender and nonbinary:

“Hi friends, I want to share with you that I am trans, my pronouns are he/they and my name is Elliot. I feel lucky to be writing this. To be here. To have arrived at this place in my life. I feel overwhelming gratitude for the incredible people who have supported me along this journey. I can’t begin to express how remarkable it feels to finally love who I am enough to pursue my authentic self. I’ve been endlessly inspired by so many in the trans community. Thank you for your courage, your generosity and ceaselessly working to make this world a more inclusive and compassionate place. I will offer whatever support I can and continue to strive for a more loving and equal society. I love that I am trans. And I love that I am queer. And the more I hold myself close and fully embrace who I am, the more I dream, the more my heart grows and the more I thrive. To all the trans people who deal with harassment, self-loathing, abuse, and the threat of violence every day: I see you, I love you, and I will do everything I can to change this world for the better.”

Welcome out, Elliot. It’s a brave move, even in the 21^st century, to come out as trans. But here’s hoping visibility will erase the hate; here’s hoping your first steps pave the way for others to make that move.

Welcome out.

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Caroline Giuliani, offering her batshit crazy daddy, Rudy, some “self-care tips” … like how to care for an adopted dog … or taking on a hobby … after _____lost the election bigly:

“Avoid charcoal products or anything with artificial dyes, which may result in your face oozing as you make false claims of voter fraud in Philadelphia, for example.{And] breathe. As a devoted yogi and longtime breather, I recommend inhaling for two months—the length of time that Donald Trump once suggested the coronavirus would last—and exhaling for 16 years, the average length of a Supreme Court justice appointment. Please, just treat [the dog] better than Trump has treated his lapdogs: William Barr, Ted Cruz and Lindsey Graham. [Try] knitting, Reiki, capoeira, even building imaginary walls—there are so many enriching possibilities. (Please note that whining, lying, and grabbing women by the pussy are not skills.) Call your friends and family. Connect with the people in your life who prioritize science, empathy and facts. Or at least stop ignoring your relatives who just want you to allow the democratic process to unfold unobstructed. (Artsy daughters are especially insightful.)”

Suh-nap

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Ryan Phillippe, actor, on how his Baptist parents shunned him for playing a gay teen shunned by his parents on One Life To Live:

“I thought my parents were going to disown me [for deciding to do Cruel Intentions]. I had grown up going to, like, Baptist school and Christian school. My first role ever coming out of the Christian school when I was a senior in high school, I played the first gay character on a soap opera—first gay teenager ever—and so I was shunned at that point. So, they were already out of the picture. I mean this was 1992, and I was playing a gay teenager and I was in a Christian school. They weren’t happy about it.”

Life imitating art. Even worse his parents didn’t want him to play gay and so they shunned him. I wonder what they might have done if Phillippe was actually gay.

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Melissa McCarthy, actress, apologizing for HBO Max’s $20,000 donation to Exodus Cry, an organization led by Benjamin Nolot, who is virulently anti-LGBTQ and anti-choice:

“It has come to our attention that our 20 Days of Kindness, which is something—a  kindness up that we started to kind of shine a light on 20 great charities—had one in there that, there’s no other way to say it, we blew it. We made a mistake, and we backed a charity that, upon proper vetting, stands for everything that we do not. So, I want to thank everyone, on social media who said, ‘What are you doing? Are you sure you want to back this?’ Because the answer was no we do not. We have pulled it. We are so incredibly grateful for you ringing the bell and helping us be better, We’re sorry for our mistake. Oh boy, are we sorry for it. [I] can’t believe that we missed it. And that’s it. And I just want to say that I hope it doesn’t ding the other charities because they’re really doing some amazing things, and 20 Days of Kindness Is really meant to shine the light on all of those wonderful charities. So, let the kindness continue… and thank you. Thanks for the help, we really needed it.”

The donation was made as part of a 20 Days of Kindness campaign to promote McCarthy’s new film Superintelligence. Nolot, who now claims his views have changed, has a history of inflammatory rhetoric towards homosexuals and abortion, and has referred to homosexuality as ‘an unspeakable offense to God’ and compared abortion to the Holocaust.

Thanks to Melissa McCarthy who, unlike Nolot, realized that when you know better, you do better.

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Braunwyn Windham-Burke, of the Real Housewives of Orange County, coming out as a lesbian:

“It’s been something that I think everyone’s kind of known has been coming, but I’m finally comfortable enough to say, I like women. I’m gay. I’m a member of the LGBTQI+ community. I’m a lesbian. It has taken me 42 years to say that, but I’m so proud of where I am right now. And I’m so happy where I am. To be able to be comfortable in my own skin after so long is just so nice. I love [my husband] Sean. I love him dearly, he is my person, he is my family. But I’m not attracted to men and I never have been. We are in unchartered territories. Sean and I are still married, I plan on staying married. We are not sleeping in the same bedroom right now, but we are in the same house. We are raising our kids together, he’s my best friend. He knows the girl I’m dating. I grew up in a time when, you know, my idea of what being a lesbian was you had short hair, you wore flannel. There’s a very masculine stereotype, so when I was younger I never really thought that I could be that. I knew I was attracted to women. I always have been. But I liked makeup and hair and I didn’t quite understand what to do with that.”

Windham-Burke has been married to her husband Sean Burke for more than 20 years, and they have seven children. She also revealed this season that she is an alcoholic..

After reading this I watched RHoC that night, and while, during that episode she had yet to come out, she did reveal that she had been living her life doing what others wanted of her, keeping quiet, not being true to herself. And now, at 42, she’s coming into her own.

Good for her. Welcome out, Braunwyn, and please accept as out gift from HOMO HQ the Official Coming Out Toaster Oven™ and a copy of the Gay Agenda.

It matters now when or how you do it, it only matters that you do it. Welcome out.

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