Laura Jane Grace and Coming Out as Trans in the Public Eye
Julia Serano
http://www.transadvocate.com/laura-jane-grace-and-coming-out-as-trans-in-the-public-eye.htm or
http://juliaserano.blogspot.com/2012/05/laura-jane-grace-and-coming-out-as.htmlSo about once every year or two, somebody comes out as trans in a rather high profile way. Two years ago it was Chaz Bono. Before that there was Christine Daniels, Susan Stanton, and others before them. When this happens, I usually experience a mix of emotions.
Lots of trans folks celebrate the visibility that comes with these high profile coming outs, and how it can humanize us in the eyes of the world. In my case, when I came out to my family as a trans woman in 2002, they took it really hard. But a year later, when Jenny Boylan appeared on Oprah, my Mom rushed out to buy her book. While my Mom had come to accept who I was before then, the fact that another trans woman was on Oprah (a show she watched every day) really normalized the whole experience for her. Rather than me being the only trans person she knew, my Mom got to see that there were others like me out there in the world.
