Pride Day is rather famously set to occur on the last Sunday of June, with this occasion fast approaching you may be beginning to consider ways to come out to your parents. Our parents, in some cases, can be the last people we confide in while for others they may be our first point of reference. For the LGBTQI+ community, coming out can be helpful for visibility, pride, and living a more honest existence. But coming out is incredibly difficult and everyone will have a unique experience and should not feel pressured to come out in any particular way. Before coming out to your parents this Pride Day please consider your own safety and stability before doing so! If you are still determined to come out to your parents this Pride Day, here are some ways in which you might want to. Remember that there is no right or wrong way to come out and that you are loved regardless.
Often times writing a letter, because of the chance to write and rewrite what you intend to say, in some circumstances compiling a number of drafts before you reach one you are happy with, can be a great way to come out to your parents. By writing your truth on paper you don’t have to worry about your own words escaping you or in the heat of the moment, saying the complete wrong thing. If you don’t want to come out to your parents to their face you can either post or leave this letter for them to read later. If you are in an unsafe or more risk-filled situation, this can also ensure your safety by taking away your physical presence but still letting your truth be heard. Letters can still be personal and heartfelt and many find this a helpful way to come out!
Very similar to the letter, you can write an email and send it and come out to your parents that way. This is a good strategy to come out if you are feeling the fire in your belly begin to burn, encouraging you to tell your parents but live away from home or just feel most comfortable using technology to send your message. An email can also be sent to more than one person at once so if you are feeling particularly brave and empowered you can send that email to your parents and other people you know! An email also gives you a chance to utilise online resources, allowing you to link potentially helpful resources that could help your family come to terms with your identity. Perhaps sending an email would work best for you!
Other than attaching resources to an email you can just ask your families to watch videos or broadcasts of others coming out. Or tell your family about some of your most inspiring LGBTQI+ icons and how their visibility matters to you and you hope that your visibility will be graciously accepted as you come out to your parents. Sometimes we can struggle to find the right things to say or can struggle to make sense of our own situations and in those times others who have done the hard work before us can speak for us. If you think your family would benefit from seeing a thriving and healthy openly gay public figure, and as though that would reassure them feel free to borrow the words from someone else and all stand in solidarity together!
Many people say that sitting their parents down or taking the opportunity to have a conversation wherever they may feel most comfortable is a way people have come out. It doesn’t matter whether you are in your home, your car, school, the supermarket or in public if you believe your parents are ready to accept you so that you can move forward with your life, go ahead and start that conversation. The hardest conversations to have are often the conversations we need to have most! Try just talking to your parents! Be conscious with your words and let your truth pour out!
These are just some ways in which you might feel comfortable coming out to your parents this Pride Day in June! Please remember that there is no particular way that you need to do this and Pride Day also does not mean you have to! Some people benefit from being able to label themselves and live authentically with that label but some will never want to label their experience and so will never formally come out to their parents or anyone they know! Don’t put pressure on yourself but do your experiences justice. We are proud of you and stand by you!
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