Sexuality. everyone has one. So when did it become so important for celebrities to declare theirs?
Back in Victorian Britain, your sexuality could have had you killed. Nowadays, coming out stories are posted everywhere, especially after the legalisation of gay marriage in the US last year. From Tom Daley to Elton John, there are hundreds of celebrities that class themselves as queer, but does it really matter? Shouldn’t we just judge a person by what they do rather than who they are?
A survey by the Observer in 2014 found that 8% of Britain’s adult population (those aged 15-64) defined themselves as either homosexual or bisexual, that being just over 3 million people. That’s a lot of people! So do they all feel the need to express their sexuality to their work colleagues or random strangers on the street? Most probably not. So why to celebrities feel the need to? I mean, it’s not like the general public have to know every single little detail about them, is it? When did it become so mainstream and ‘cool’ to be anything but straight? I mean, after George’s bandmate Jaymi Hensley came out as gay whilst Union J were on X Factor, their votes sky rocketed! My question is why didn’t George come out then? Was there something in his contract?
Ever since 2010, Larry Stylinson has been one of the worlds biggest ships. Millions of larries support and love them and are more than sure they Larry is real, so why can’t they come out if it is real? Contracts? Fear? I mean, surely it would be brilliant promo for them? Or is it just because it’s not real? Or simply because it doesn’t matter. One Direction really can’t get much bigger, can they? So what is the need for them to come out if they know that they are happy together?
Same goes for Kendall Jenner who has had a complete media flurry around her sexuality at the moment after it was rumoured she was in a relationship with friend Lauren Perez. However, these rumours and the rumours that Kendall is a lesbian were quickly shot down after her reunion with ‘ex-lover’ Harry Styles. Seemed more like they were bearding for each other, mind…
When did sexuality become such an important thing? Surely it’s just another unnecessary label that will make no difference to the music/performance ect that that person produces? Or is it just another way of making a person judge you. Nothing really matters apart from what they produce. Would it really matter if Elton John was straight? Or if David Beckham was gay? No. Because there is no reason why it should so why should it ever have to be declaired in the first place?!
This is 2016, people. Hating someone for their race sexuality and even gender is so outdated now that it makes me feel sick when I see someone being degraded just because of their DNA. No one can change the colour of their skin or their sexuality without the honest knowledge of who they really are.
There is no reason for a queer person to be judged for anything other then what they produce and their actions, not who they’re in a relationship with. The same even applies to straight celebrities. does it really matter who’s going out to dinner with who or who’s rumoured to hooked up with who? Do celebrities really give up their privacy when they sign their contracts? If so, there’s something seriously wrong.
To quote Jack Falahee, “I don’t think answering who I’m sleeping with accomplishes anything other than quenching the thirst of curiosity. Moreover, it seems reductive. It’s been really interesting to be in the middle of the industry’s fascination with the individual, because I never thought about that growing up or when I was at acting school. No matter how I answer, someone will say, ‘No, that’s not true.’ We still live in this hetero-normative, patriarchal society that is intent on placing everything within these binaries. I really hope that — if not in my lifetime, my children’s lifetime — this won’t be a question, that we won’t need this.”
What are your thoughts? Do you think it’s important for a celebrity to be open about their sexuality? Or do you think there’s no point to it and that it’s something for only them and their friends and family? Let us know on Twitter – @CelebMix