Outing

NEW YORK -- Though decried by many gay rights leaders, “outing” -- the practice of exposing secretly gay public figures -- is expanding into new terrain as Internet bloggers target congressional staff members, political strategists, even black clergy whose sermons and speeches contain antigay rhetoric.

Few issues are as divisive within the gay community. Numerous gay organizations, such as the Human Rights Campaign and the Log Cabin Republicans, staunchly oppose outing, yet many other activists support it when the targets are public figures -- or their aides -- who work against gay rights or condemn homosexuality.

“It’s not the gay thing that’s the problem; it’s the hypocrisy,” said Michael Rogers, creator of a Web log that has been at the fore of several recent outing campaigns. “I’m going to be calling out the politicians who vote against us and work against the interests of the very community they come from.” (source)

I agree with outing. I used to have a more moderate approach on this subject. I only approved of the practice for extremely homophobic individuals who were known to be gay in private circles, but outwardly did harm to our community

Today, there’s too much at stake. Usually, when a public official speaks out against us, it concerns gay marriage and local or state benefits for gay couples, or job discrimination against gay and transgendered people.

I am all for free speech rights, but that is not the issue here. If you are a public figure, you can still say and do whatever it is you want to say or do, but you have to understand that your actions can have consequences. If you are supporting the denial of rights for gay people, and you are gay yourself, that information if fair game for the public to know.

Real people and real families are being hurt because of this hypocrisy. It should be exposed. There’s too much at stake. If you are a politician who happens to be gay, do as you wish. But if you continually try to prevent equality in the workplace or in our everyday lives, and try to benefit in your political life at our expense, you deserve to be outed.