Coming out can be the most nerve-racking thing in a gay person’s life, regardless of their age, race or religious affiliation. Even when people such as our parents show the utmost support for the LGBTQ community, it’s never completely solid how they’ll react to their child (or friend or sibling or whomever) being somewhere on the LGBTQ spectrum.
As a way to show support for coming out, YouTube has become inundated with coming out stories either told through the person who came out or recorded live in the moment. Some have been awful, some have been fantastic and some have landed somewhere in-between. Below, we’ve collected some of the most memorable.
Hayden Smith
In raw video footage, Hayden Smith comes out to his mom as gay while a camera is secretly rolling. So nervous that he visibly shakes, Smith was first surprised when his mom applauded him for his bravery, thanked him for telling her and ensured him that she didn’t love him any less. His second surprise was when she told him that she had a girlfriend. Mutual coming out moment!
Luke and Adam Monastero
These twins came out to their parents early this fall and recorded their reactions. Despite the shock from both parents, they proceeded to have a great Q&A with the boys at a later date to not only get everything out on the table, but show how important communication is for love and acceptance in a family.
Connor
A gay Mormon by the name of Connor came out earlier this year, explaining his depression and fears of rejection from his family. Throughout his talk, one thing he mentioned was how much of a fan he was of YouTube personality Davey Wavey. When Davey got the news, he drove to Texas with some friends to meet the young man as a surprise. The results were fantastic.
Daniel Ashley Pierce
When Pierce came out to his family, his secret video recorded the religiously-fuelled abuse he received as a result, ultimately being kicked out of the house. The video itself is nowhere near uplifting, but the awesomeness of this coming out story is how the LGBTQ community banded together afterwards. As soon as the video hit the internet, it went viral in partial thanks to Dan Savage and other LGBTQ activists who found the family’s response outrageous. A GoFundMe page was immediately launched to help with Pierce’s housing and living expenses. Within days, it was reported that he was living under a roof, was safe, had the full support of his boyfriend and was doing well.
Please note that the video may be difficult to watch for some individuals, particularly in regards to physical and verbal abuse.
Lucas Cruikshank
YouTube personality Lucas Cruikshank had a most refreshing coming out experience to share with his YouTube fans, approaching it pretty much along the lines of, “And?” He’s so confident in his identity that he hadn’t realized a supposed necessity to blatantly say it in order to confirm it. Cruikshank just is. The video itself is fun to watch. It revolves around a gigglefest largely started from the ridiculousness of needing to tell people you’re gay so that they know you’re gay.
Dan Brian
Vlogger Dan Brian continues to have one of the most heart-warming coming out videos to date, though a large part of the credit should go to his mother. As he nervously comes out to his mother—and finds himself looking at his phone as a security blanket in his anxiety—his mother is unmoved by the news, telling him she still loves him and applauds him for his bravery. This is how every coming out experience should be…until coming out is no longer necessary, that is.
