Coming Out of the Closet: Is it Safe?
Everyone tells you to come out of the closet. They say that coming out will be a freeing experience. They go on and on about how fantastic you will feel and give you all sorts of advice on how to deal with people who don’t accept you. They’ll tell you that if anyone doesn’t like it, you don’t need them anyway.
That’s all well and good, but sometimes you do need to think about the safety risks of coming out of the closet. While everyone will agree that coming out of the closet is the best thing for you, there are some situations where you might want to think about whether or not coming out of the closet is the right move:
- Are you currently still in school? While I applaud anyone with the guts to come out of the closet in middle school or high school, young people do need to think about the safety risks more than anyone. Let’s face it, teenagers can be violent and stupid. Maybe you go to a school that has already started a Gay Straight Alliance, or isin a more open-minded community. Maybe there are already a few students who are “out” and living happy safe lives. Only you know what your environment is like. Just be careful. You do not want to be the victim of bullying or even worse, hate crimes. While it’s great to be out of the closet, you need to think about safety first.
- What will the people at the office say? Many states DO NOT have laws protecting the rights of homosexuals. This means that often it is NOT illegal for someone to fire you because you are gay. Read up about the local laws before you decide to come out of the closet. Also, although many offices have policies regarding discrimination and work-place harassment, you should probably check up on what the policies are at your specific workplace. Think about how your work environment might change by coming out, and decide whether or not coming out is the right decision for you.
At the end of the day, you need to think about what is right for you. If you are ready to come out of the closet, but you feel the environment isn’t safe, maybe you need to re-evaluate why you are in your particular environment. Obviously, if you’re in high school this might be a little tricky. But there are options for you. Maybe you need to have your parents transfer you to a more open-minded school. If you are working in an office that is homophobic, maybe you need to consider whether or not you’d rather just work in a more accepting environment.
