Why is October 11 celebrated as Coming Out Day? #ComingOutDay
Did you know why October 11th is celebrated as 'Coming Out Day'? How it became a date to raise global awareness about the importance of visibility, speaking out, and claiming the rights of LGBTQ+ people.
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Coming Out Day was Cleve Jones' Names Project AIDS Memorial Quilt was first displayed there .
This is a collective creation, begun two years prior. It was composed of the names and memories of people who died from AIDS-related complications. Through patchwork mosaics—painted, embroidered, or handcrafted fabrics—this piece rescued the memory of the deceased at a time when the social stigma of HIV deprived many people of a funeral.
At the time, the quilt's display caused a great stir. Ronald Reagan was the President of the United States, and the country was marked by the AIDS crisis and the lack of public policies. Months after that massive second Washington Pride march, two activists, Robert Eichberg and Jean O'Leary,
Eichberg, a psychologist, published a book about visibility called 'Coming Out: An Act of Love'. He died at age 50 from AIDS-related complications.
Jean O'Leary founded Lesbian Feminist Liberation , one of the first lesbian groups within the women's movement. Before coming out as a lesbian and activist, O'Leary was a nun, and in 1985 she published the book "Lesbian Nuns: Breaking the Silence." Activist Sean Strub then convinced artist Keith Haring to join the campaign and donate the following image, which quickly became iconic.
In recent years, the torch of Eichberg and O'Leary has been taken up by the civil organization Human Rights Campaign (HRC).
From musicians to artists, many collaborate with this organization. The campaign has become an international movement.
Marking the 29th anniversary of National Coming Out Day, HRC considers it a powerful tool. They speak not only to LGBTQ+ people but also to those who consider themselves allies. For all of them, there is material on visibility and activism that can be downloaded from their website .
What does 'coming out of the closet' mean?
The phrase "coming out" comes from popular sayings about having "something hidden in the closet," from the idea that we keep what we don't want to show—or what others don't want to see—in our wardrobes. But it wasn't always this way.
In pre-World War I society, the term coming out" referred to entering, or presenting oneself to, the gay community. It was a way for "debutantes" to enter non-heterosexual social networks. Historian George Chauncey explains this in his 1994 book, "Gay New York."
Over time, this "coming out" into a world of "fabulous" people merged with other coming outs, such as the people who left the Stonewall Inn shouting for their rights. Thus, "coming out" and "coming out of the closet" became synonymous.
Presentes will be highlighting Coming Out Day across all our social media platforms. Find us on Facebook , Twitter , and Instagram , and tell us your story too! #ThisIsHowIComeOut
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