I recently read on-line in GAYSTARNEWS, May 16. 2013, that Glee star, Matthew Morrison, aka Will Schuster, Spanish teacher and Glee Club coach, had to come out straight to a magazine writer who thought he was gay. Of course, the writer/interviewer should have done his homework before presuming anything about this talented singer, songwriter, and actor of both stage and television.
Matthew is not gay, but is a strong ally of the LGBT movement. He has released a new video for the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the largest LGBT advocacy organization, in which he speaks out, as part of a campaign, for marriage equality. HRC will receive part of the proceeds of his new solo album “Where It All Began,” to be released in June.
Just as the magazine writer presumed Morrison was gay, so do many people project their preconceived notions of what should constitute male and female behavior unto a person deemed in question. Although the arts do attract a gay following, you can’t presume that all male ballet dancers are gay, for example. Think Danish ex-principal dancer with the New York City Ballet Peter Martins. After a long relationship with dancer Heather Watts, he married NYCB star Darci Kistler, the mother of his daughter. More recently, beautiful actress Natalie Portman who starred with and, was choreographed by, French dancer Benjamin Millepied in Black Swan. Portman and Millepied are married and have a son.
Similarly, many think the field of fashion is supposedly rife with gay male designers. But Bronx-born Jewish Ralph Lauren with his expensive belts and jeans projects an image as macho as “The Marlboro Man” from yesteryear. Lauren is married to Ricky, often seen in his ads, and is the father of three sons. Tommy Hilfiger, with his successful lifestyle label, is married for the second time, with five children.
At the other extreme, you have the first active gay male athlete in one of the major U.S. sports to come out via Sports Illustrated. Jason Collins, the ex-Center for the Washington Wizards, now a free agent, who was engaged to a girl, surprised everyone with his announcement. Even his twin brother Jarron who went to Stanford University with him, told Jimmy Kimmel on May 15, 2013, that he missed “red flags” about Jason’s sexual orientation. Jarron presumed his brother, who always dated girls, was heterosexual.
GLBT persons come in all sizes and shapes and can be found in all professions. You can’t presume their sexual orientation any more than you can a heterosexual’s. That is presumptuous.
When Your Child Is Gay: What You Need To Know
For more detailed advice, see book, co-authored with a mother of a gay son and a psychiatrist, Jonathan L. Tobkes, M.D.