Why do LGBTQ people need to “come out”? Straight Jews don’t seem to need to come out about their sexuality or gender?

  • Straight people don’t need to “come out” because there is an assumption in our community that everyone is default heterosexual and cisgender, However, if one were to mistakenly assume that a straight person were queer, you can bet that the individual (no matter how Orthodox) would “come out” as straight pretty quickly.
  • Straight people actually come out all the time in our communities. They come out when they introduce their partners, invite people to their life cycle events, and talk about their hopes and dreams
  • Coming out empowers a person to find helpful support resources as well as others like them
  • Research consistently shows that LGBTQ youth who come out have higher self esteem and avoid a variety of negative psychological adjustment issues including depression, isolation, self harm, risky behavior and compulsive sexual activity.