National Coming Out Day: Why some of us are still afraid to come out

The country is marking National Coming Out Day, reminding us that many of us were able to come out and be open about our sexuality.

But despite this era of openness where we can proudly proclaim a National Coming Out Day, a lot of us are still hiding in the closet, afraid of the thought of coming out.

Let’s hear their side of why they’re afraid to come out.

Reason #1: “What if I’m wrong?”

It’s been so ingrained in our minds that only men and women are allowed to fall in love or get married. For centuries, it has been an up-and-down cycle for same-sex relationships.

It’s no surprise then that some of us consider same-sex attraction as an abnormal feeling. Remember the homophobic attacker in the Orlando shooting?

While some of us are adamant that we’re right, others who haven’t come out think that we could be wrong.

Reason #2: “I’m offended by the gay and lesbian statements.”

We often hear people say, “That’s so gay.” Or, they throw the word “dyke” around casually when they don’t like a woman.

If this is the kind of jokes you hear often, where will you find the guts to come out?

It has been so normal to joke about gays and lesbians because for the longest time, we were at the bottom rung of sexual orientation.

We’re sissies, we’re crazy, and we can’t have the person that we love. Those are the jokes we hear about us.

Reason #3: “It’s a different world.”

If you’re lesbian or gay, you’re of a different specie– at least that’s what’s been constantly hammered in our minds.

When you fall in love with the same sex, you’ll be like Alice falling down in a rabbit hole– nothing will ever be same.

Some of us are afraid because we don’t know what the future holds for us when we go into same-sex relationships.

Reason #4: “I’m afraid of my parents.”

For most of us– especially the young ones– the last persons we usually come out to are our parents.

While a lot of parents have come to understand same-sex feelings, there are still quite a number who will rue the day you were born.

This is perhaps the number one cause of teenage depression among LGBT: not being able to come out to their parents.

If you can’t come out to your own parents, how can you come out to world?

Reason #5: “I’m afraid people will reject me.”

The worst reason for not coming out: people might think I’m a freak. Sound familiar?

Years of mental institutions, years of witch hunts for gays, years of being ridiculed, years of being bullied– these have caused us to think that we’re freaks.

Coming out would mean people– not all– but a lot will reject us or shun us.

This has basis because in some countries, having same-sex feelings is still considered a crime.

Despite all of these reasons, let’s understand and support our sisters and brothers who are afraid to come out this National Coming Out Day.