James Randi says:
Well, here goes. I really resent the term, but I use it because it’s recognized and accepted.
I’m gay.
From some seventy years of personal experience, I can tell you that there’s not much “gay” about being homosexual. For the first twenty years of my life, I had to live in the shadows, in a culture that was — at least outwardly — totally hostile to any hint of that variation of life-style.
[…]
Gradually, the general attitude that I’d perceived around me began to change, and presently I find that there has emerged a distinctly healthy acceptance of different social styles of living — except, of course, in cultures that live in constant and abject fear of divine retribution for infractions found in the various Holy Books… In another two decades, I’m confident that young people will find themselves in a vastly improved atmosphere of acceptance.
I hope he's right. I hope that, one day, we will live in a more tolerant and enlightened world, where people won’t feel like they have to keep their identity hidden from all the ignorant bigots who reflexively hate them. Until then, I applaud people like James Randi who have the courage to speak up, and the greatest sympathy for those who feel like they can’t.
Thanks Randi. Where I live it’s never been much of a problem and still I didn’t declare my bisexuality until I was 34. Over here being bi doesn’t even come with much of the unique prejudices you get over it.
To be 81, you’ve seen it go from potentially lethal hate to gaining acceptance. We’re still not there and until 2 boys or girls can hold hands at school like their hetero peers, we have some ground to cover. So your coming out is very relevant.
Again, thanks.
“I hope he’s right. I hope that, one day, we will live in a more tolerant and enlightened world, where people won’t feel like they have to keep their identity hidden from all the ignorant bigots who reflexively hate them. Until then, I applaud people like James Randi who have the courage to speak up, and the greatest sympathy for those who feel like they can’t.”
I think that we’re getting there, certainly, though its gonna take a loooong time to be there everywhere. I took a long time coming out as bisexual because I don’t see it in those terms so much as I am attracted to people and sometimes they’re the same sex I am. I just didn’t know how to say it. The younger people I know all seem to think its /normal/ (though, living near DC, they’re not exactly the standard for everywhere)
Thanks for posting this. I came out during my senior year of high school in 1997 and it’s easy for me to get discouraged about the lack of acceptance since then. It is helpful to look at it from the perspective of someone that has been fighting for much longer than that. I truly hope he is right, that in my lifetime I can be an accepted member of our society.
One night in college, a mixed race friend of mine pulled down the “N” volume of an old encyclopedia he had dug up from the archives of our (coed) fraternity house. He proceeded to give a dinner reading of the entry of “Negro”. He read it with this professorial voice, using hand gestures to emphasize such absurdities as that people from Africa were sub-human, though African-Americans had been interbred enough to qualify as human. We howled with laughter until tears streamed down our cheeks.
That’s what I hope, one day, racism and homophobia become — something so absurd that our descendants cannot imagine taking it seriously.
This makes me want to go thrift store shopping for REALLY old encyclopedias and find out what other hilarity they contain!
Hey Wil, about that sympathy?
Thanks. It means a lot to me, and, I’m certain, to a lot of other people.
Keep being awesome.
Jesus, Randi. Fighting cancer, pseudoscience, psychics, creationists, and cranks enough for you? You have to tee up against bigotry as well?
You’re 81, man: take a vacation!
Wil,
Thank you for posting this – the more we start dialogues, and get the absurdities of prejudice because of race, sexual preference, and beliefs out in the open, the quicker we can break down some of these invisible barriers to enable people to have safe and happy lives as themselves.
MOZ
“I hope that, one day, we will live in a more tolerant and enlightened world, where people won’t feel like they have to keep their identity hidden from all the ignorant bigots who reflexively hate them.”
I hope for another step past this: that one day, the need to announce “I’m gay” will be as superfluous as announcing “I’m a girl” or “I have red hair.” Straight kids don’t need to make a special announcement to society about their sexual preferences; they just start dating someone. Here’s to the day when bi, gay, or anyone else with a non-“standard” sexual orientation can do the same.
Thank you for this, Wil. I too hope the world gets over itself, and learns to accept that we are all different, and deserve equal treatment. It makes me so sad that this issue is still taboo. I wish people would get it through their heads that gay isn’t a choice. It’s not something where you wake up one morning and say, today I think I’ll become gay. Doesn’t work like that.
When one feels they can’t be who they truly are deep inside, it is as if they aren’t living at all. And people wonder why depression is off the scale these days.
The world needs more people like you, Wil. You have a heart of gold.
Your support is, as ever, greatly appreciated by your LGBTQ fans, Wil.
(I had a much longer comment about coming out as political statement, and hiding and passing… but it was shite, and I deleted it.)
Let me start of by saying, great post. I do also hope a lot more acceptance will be natural towards gay people in the future. Better sooner then later.
But I have to add, being Dutch myself, living and growing up in a culture that is more accepting of gay people (for example we have had openly gay people in our military for a relatively long time), the time you are talking about the 23rd/24th century. The time where there are captains flying around in star ships named Enterprise. A time when there is no poverty or malice. Until then there will always be jerks.
I have been mailing with a young gay person in the US who is afraid to come out. I am trying to be supportive and to advise for as much as I can though I also see her point and I understand her fears.
I am not gay, but I myself stood out of the crowd growing up (I was fat). Kids are the purest form of humanity and how humanity deals with being a social creature, living in groups. They do feel the need to be the Alpha and not the Omega. So it is easy to pick on the fat kid, or the red haired kid, or the kid with some other thing which makes him/her stand out.
Common sense tells most people that everybody is equal, no matter their appearance or sexual orientation. But there are those people that will not ever see that. They live to still be the cool kid on the playground, no matter their age. They can not listen to reason.
To give you an example that made me kinda sick… In my hometown there were only a hand full of black people. One adopted kid and some Indonesians (who I feel strangely enough were accepted). One of the Indonesian kids was my best friend until he moved. That aside, I was hanging around the fishing pool one day, I was about 25, and there was this Somalian family taking a walk. They had not long before moved there. When they had past us some 40 year old dudes who I was standing with were making racist remarks about them. The sad thing is they thought they were cool talking about them like that. Cool towards each other. These were grown men, but apparently they disrespected a person who they didn’t know based on the color of their skin.
The real thing that made me sick was that I did not have the courage to tell them they were being pathetic.
So basically… Because men is a social being who lives in groups there will always be a struggle to be the Alpha. Lots of people fear to speak out because of peer pressure. The Alpha is good at being an Alpha because he knows how to pick on people who are different. People will follow that “leader” although often thinking differently. They will act as jerks to hope to be accepted by the Alpha and thus climbing in rank. This competition means trampling on the weak, the Omega’s the people who stand out. Being gay puts you immediately in a minority so it is easy to label a gay person the Omega.
There is a hope however. People can feel free to be themselves in a group of people who are open minded. Basically in a group of people who were not the Alpha growing up, or who have grown to understand that being an Alpha is not the most important thing in life. But, for now, there will always be jerks.
PS: Sorry for the wall o’text.
In regards to the holy books, I can only speak on behalf of the bible. Being a bigot and reflexively hating someone is never acting in good conduct. Anyone who claims to be a Christian yet actively participates in hatred is obviously ignorant to what the bible teaches.
The bible plainly states homosexuality is wrong. If you believe in the bible, then you will most likely believe homosexuality is wrong as well. It’s not necessarily a personal attack on a homosexual to tell them that their lifestyle is in err. It should only be taken as an opinion based on a faith. Though, religious fanatics who act in a hateful manner often make it difficult for the rest of the level minded religious people to have a sensible conversation on a subject matter.
I accept a homosexual as he or she is. There is no hatred or bigotry whatsoever. That’s not to say I think it’s an OK practice, though, and I will speak out against homosexuality given the opportunity just as others will speak for it.
I said all that to say this; in my biased opinion, I think we should also be accepting of people who think homosexuality is wrong based on religious or other reasons. It seems the reverse is often happening these days. Many ‘open minded’ people often berate others for not being as open minded as they should be. How about being a little open minded about my close mindedness?
Wow, thanks to your blog, I knew about this before my wife did. I never hear news before her. This is a red letter day! Also, I’m thrilled with this news.
Wow. I’m so proud of James Randi for all he has done to speak out against ignorance, and now having the courage to speak out against homophobia, well it just makes me love him even more. To have to hide that part of his identity for so long must have been terrible; in fact it is tragic. It’s so sad that he, and so many others, have to live in wold of secrecy for fear of hate and violence against them.
Wil, I echo your hope, and I appreciate you sharing it here with your fans. Thank you.
The reason you find people not being open-minded about closed-mindedness is because of the broader social impact such statements make. When you say ‘homosexuality is wrong’ you reinforce cultural memes that make it that much harder to get equal rights legislation passed, and makes it that much more likely that people are going to be targeted, harassed, and possibly assaulted for their identity. You add to the cultural dialogue that marginalizes homosexuals.
As a related side note, in your post you imply that homosexuality is a *choice*, that homosexuals are ‘choosing’ to live a ‘lifestyle’ that is wrong. However, even if it IS a choice, (and I do not believe it is) the other choice is living a life that denies who they are. Living like that causes enormous emotional stress, which often leads to depression, possibly suicide. I doubt that this is a better alternative under any moral system.
I can’t possibly agree more. I really hope that time comes sometime during my lifetime.
Gay, schmay. I wish he’d just admit he’s actually a psychic and mind reader and seer of dead people. He’s always claiming to be a ‘debunker’ and not a psychic but he’s totally psychic. I wish he’d just come out. I mean, how could he do all that stuff unless he’s really psychic? How else could he know that all missing/presumed dead people are ‘near a body of water’ unless he’s in touch with the otherworld? How could he know that woman’s dead father is at peace and proud of her?!?! How could he know that guy’s card was the 4 of clubs!?!? He even supports anti-psychic education!! There’s nothing worse than a self-hating, closeted psychic.
I don’t know him, but the fact that you don’t understand certain suff doesn’t mean he is a psychic. People did not understand how lightning worked. Doesn’t mean you have to be a god to make lightning.
Hi, Marijn. I see you are Dutch. The intended tone of my comment probably didn’t come across. The only Dutch words I could find to explain are: grappig, schertsend, zogenaamd leuk. Also, about lightning. I went to public school here in the US so, of course, I know that Benjamin Franklin invented lighting.
Hehe. Well you made me laugh, but since I don’t know the guy I didn’t really know how to interpret it. And I know, Benjamin Franklin is a god!
Here’s stuff on James Randi. IMO, he’s really interesting: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Randi & http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/about-james-randi.html
Okay, I really admire Randi (met him once too) and have nothing but respect for his anti-pseudoscience positions. I was a regular poster on his websites forums for some time, and got mentioned in one of his weekly columns (in a nice way). But come on. The guy is 81, and has already polarized opinion around himself based on his humanist and sceptical positions when it comes to things like God or religion and the supernatural in general.
To come out of the closet now, at 81, is not a particularly brave thing. Even though America is still a far from gay-friendly place, where gay people could marry and adopt children without it raising an eyebrow, it is still a darn sight better than it was 30 years ago.
Had he come out of the closet then, while he was a regular on Johnny Carson, or had his magic career to worry about, it would have been a brave (and quite possibly foolhardy) thing to do.
But today? No, it’s not particularly brave.
As Randi surmised later in his post, it’s not really much of a surprise, is it? Good for him, and I only hope that he hasn’t suffered too much during the years of hiding it. I do believe he is right, that this stigma is disappearing, and that those who continue to oppose gay marriage and otherwise disparage and even attack homosexuals are dinosaurs who are hopelessly out of touch with the world they will be living in ten years from now. I remember when I was in high school, about the same time Wil was, that being gay meant instant ostracizing, perhaps less so in SoCal than in my Southern town, but even in that backwards place that I grew up, homosexuals can be out in high school and no one really cares. There’s been a lot of progress in the last twenty years, and there will be more.
Thank you Wil! It’s beyond amazing to have support from intellegent influential individuals such as yourself!! Brava to Randi for joining the brave ranks of OUT celebrities, and Brava to you for promoting inclusion!!!
George Takei, Ian McKellan, Albus Dumbledore, and now James Randi.
All badass old men. All gay.
Randi is in good company.
Jesus never condemned homosexuality.
There’s an ongoing joke about Jesus’s ideas on homosexuality: A pamphlet is titled “What Jesus Said About Homosexuality” and you open it and it’s blank, page after page, blank.
Of course, that’s true. Jesus never mentioned homosexuality. Though He did mention Sodom and Gomorrah, using them as examples of inhospitality to strangers–AND neglecting to mention “sodomy.”
So you have to wonder: if Jesus was God, and so gifted at least in some way with Divine Omniscience, so He’d know there would one day be a terrible problem in Christianity and culture over homosexuality, gay rights, and same-sex marriage, why didn’t He say anything specific.
Why didn’t He say that He was abolishing all the rules in the Old Testament EXCEPT the rule against homosexual intercourse?
Why didn’t He distinguish between His forgiving the woman brought to him in adultery (“Let him who is without sin cast the first stone”) and His wanting to continue to hold homosexuality against people?
Why didn’t He say anything about how homosexual marriage would defile the sanctity of the relationship of man and woman?
Why didn’t He say anything?
Did He just keep forgetting to mention it?
The closest thing He DID say is very instructive.
In speaking about “protecting the sanctity of marriage” Jesus said:
“Because of your hardness of heart, Moses permitted you to divorce your wives; but from the beginning it has not been this way.
“And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery.”
The disciples said to him, “If the relationship of the man with his wife is like this, it is better not to marry”
But He said to them, “Not all men can accept this statement, but only those to whom it has been given.
“For there are eunuchs who were born that way from their mother’s womb; and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men; and there are also eunuchs who made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. He who is able to accept this, let him accept it.” (Matt 19: 8-12)
Curiously, if you look in the glossary of the Bible I just quoted from, it defines “eunuch” as “chamberlain, official.” If you depended on that for a dictionary, you’d have a hard time ever understanding what Jesus was talking about. You’d think the choice was between getting married and being a politician.
So what were eunuchs?
Eunuchs were men who didn’t have sex with women and/or couldn’t reproduce–who were therefore considered safe to be around women in the harem. Since they had no children, they had no vested interest in leaving a fortune to the next generation so they could be employed in government and civil service because they had no reason to be crooked or seek advantage for their own sons.
Eunuchs were sometimes men who’d been castrated in order to serve in these functions. That’s the “eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men.”
Eunuchs were also men who just didn’t look very
masculine, who weren’t interested in marrying or having sex with women, who were “sissies.” Eunuchs included men who were obviously what we’d today call homosexual.
Those–clearly–were what Jesus referred to as “eunuchs who were born that way from their mother’s womb.”
SO JESUS SAID HOMOSEXUALS ARE BORN THAT WAY!
I can’t claim credit for the above analysis, though I do agree with it. I found this information here: http://www.tobyjohnson.com/cause.html
~~
Now, I am not a christian, though I am very spiritual man. In fact, I’ve read the Sermon on the Mount (the core of Jesus’ teachings) hundreds of times and I make the principals in that teaching my way of life. No where in those words does it condemn homosexuality. In fact some of the more famous words are ‘blessed are the merciful’ and blessed are the poor in spirit’ and ‘turn the other cheek’. Where in those words does it say to condemn?
As far as open-mindedness goes. I believe that an open mind is a mind free of ‘Self’ and free of preconceived ideas. A mind that is open to spiritual truth, a mind that is free of dogma. I think that the term we are looking for when we say ‘being gay is okay’ or ‘aliens do really exist’ is actually liberal-mindedness.
Two things. One the “I’m a girl” is something you wear on your sleeve as it were. “I’m Gay” is *NOT* something everyone will wear on their sleeve, some exceptions i.e. Adam Lambart (sp?).
Second thing – every one of my gay friends came out to me by saying “This is my boyfriend (insertname)” or “This is my girlfriend (insertname)” … and that was how I found out. No big proclamation, no shock, just being normal to a friend how anyone else is. So in my little world of Los Angeles, gays are just as normal as non-gays.
It’s the fame that makes people feel they have to announce their orientation, because we humans have a pre-disposed opinion that anyone we meet is straight if we are straight, or gay if we are gay.
Except one of those four listed is fictional and written by a straight woman . . . 🙂
As for James Randi – yes, it is a small step for gay rights that yet another celebrity has come out of the closet. His choice of timing, however, would seem to indicate that our society still has a way to go to achieve complete acceptance. If a man of his accomplishments has to wait until the age of 81, with a prognosis of 50% survival over the next 5 years, before choosing to come out, then that speaks volumes.
“I hope that, one day, we will live in a more tolerant and enlightened world, where people won’t feel like they have to keep their identity hidden from all the ignorant bigots who reflexively hate them.”
I hope that’s the case for all of LGBT. For the last part of that equation it’s rarely the case today.
You know,
The growing acceptance of homosexuality has interesting parallels in the geek’s struggle to find their place in the world. Now don’t mistake me. What they suffer and have suffered is far worse than I ever underwent as a geek, but there are parallels that can be drawn.
To that end, I thank you Wil. I tried to squelch and suppress my inner geek for years beyond count. But, through your writing and people like you, Felicia Day, Jonathan Coulton, and Adam Savage, I have given my inner geek a big hug, and embraced my nerdy side. I feel an inner peace with myself that I haven’t felt since I was a child.
Society has grown up enough to start embracing “our” differences, and so, I feel confident that someday, LGBTs will find their muse, and find a world ready to embrace them as well.
Peace.
I’m not thrilled with the way he did it, honestly. Although pretty much everything said above is a valid point, I think being gleeful about coming out goes a lot further than hedging. His phrasing sounds reluctant – nobody was forcing him to come out, so why the uncertain tone? If you’ve made a decision, don’t fear it. The way he came out perpetuates the sense that being gay is something to be ashamed of. Shouting it from the rooftops is what encourages acceptance – “we’re here, we’re queer, get used to it” shows a lot more courage than “well, um, I guess…I’m (whispers) gay.”
That said, I think it is terrific news, and I am thrilled to have him on the team.
One of my favorite Onion headlines: “Gay Recruitment Drive Nears Goal”. Thanks for encouraging others to not be dicks.
Wil, Thanks for sharing that. It was a really interesting read. BTW just got your books in the mail and really look forward to reading them.
I am a conservative Christian and for me, that means only one option, set down in the Bible and commanded by Jesus: Do unto others as I would have you do unto me.
Is homosexuality wrong? I think so. Of course, I’ve been wrong about things before (At least my beliefs now are different that they were 10 or 20 years ago), so I have to entertain the possibility I am wrong on this, too.
If I am wrong, then my treatmeant of homosexuals should be no different that how I treat anyone- the way I’d want to be treated. Friendship, respect, dignity.
If I am right, on the other hand, then I have to look at how I’d want someone to ‘treat’ me if I were wrong. I would want someone to at least discuss it with me since the consequenses could be eternal, so I think I should have some drive to share what I believe, if the audience is open to discussing it as well. But how would I want to be approached? I know I wouldn’t listen to a maniac yelling at me and calling down condemnation on head. I know I wouldn’t care what someone who shows contempt and hatred towards me says. I know I would want a discussion that treats my views with respect, not a lecture.
What would convince me to take the time to think about such matters is a friend who has proven they care for me first of all. I would hope they would talk to me as a friend, listen to my point of view, and respect my choice to either act or not act on their advice. So that’s how I have to treat others.
Right or wrong, I have no situation where hatred, violence, disdain, or disrespect is going to be the answer to the question of how I’d like to be treated. Thus I have to accept that if I believe what the Bible has to say, I need to strive to avoid those attitudes and instead treat people with love and respect, regardless of their agreement or disagrent with me. Will I be perfect at it? Doubtful. But I hope that when I err, it will be on the side of kindness.
Also, I want to thank everynoe for keeping the discsussion civil. This can be a hot-button topic, and I think it says something good about this community that we can disagree on some major topics yet still show respect.
Given his age, I am more than willing to forgive any hesitation — the fact that he’s actually said it is probably a lot braver than somebody like me coming out at 34 (were I to, though I’m not gay) in this day and age. When he was my age, it was an entirely different world. It’s hard to shake everything you grew up with and experienced for most of your life, isn’t it?
I’m very happy for him. No more lies or hiding what shouldn’t need to be hidden in the first place.
I don’t agree with Hqueso’s opinion on the topic (for many reasons, some of which are pointed out in these comments) but I completely agree with his attitude toward dealing with and discussing such things – in short, treating people as human beings.
Randi is a rockin’ guy; so humble, so amazing, I just am at a loss for adjectives of the right calibre to describe him. I am also utterly unsurprised by his announcement, he set my gaydar pinging a long time ago. I count myself lucky to be able to say I have met him, shaken his hand and sat at a table to share a meal with him. His achievements in rationality and humanism will outlive and outshine anything as trivial as this announcement.
I commend him for having the courage after all of these years to decide to shed the stigma and let the world know who he really is. If you really think about it, during the time when he realized that he was gay, there was absolutely no tolerance, understanding or acceptance for homosexuals at all, and that is just really sad. To live for all of this time not really being able to be himself must have been incredibly difficult on him. My hat’s off to Mr. Randi. His courage is truly inspirational and I admire him now even more than ever.
Thank you for posting that and your opinion about it. I, too, hope for a world where intolerance doesn’t keep people hiding who they are.
While some actor’s past work left a bad mark on them, your work on Gene Roddenberry’s series, ST:TNG, left a good mark on you, a mark of love and tolerance.
Your posting makes me even prouder to be a gay TNG fan.
“my treatmeant of homosexuals should be no different that how I treat anyone- the way I’d want to be treated. Friendship, respect, dignity” ………
“Right or wrong, I have no situation where hatred, violence, disdain, or disrespect is going to be the answer to the question of how I’d like to be treated”
Those two comments in your post jumped out at me as such simple, straightforward ways of looking at, and dealing with others.
Now,I am in no way, shape or form a conservative Christian, however,I was raised on the Golden Rule -Do unto others as you would have them do unto you (Mom’s version)
What a kinder, more peaceful world this would be if people stopped for a second, and thought,”would I want someone to do what I am about to do, to me?”
I was just up here reading some of the comments since this was first posted, and I agree with you on the civility of the posts as well. This is a hot button topic to be sure, and everyone has stated their opinions with dignity, eloquence, and not one bit of bickering. Very impressive!! I am quite grateful to have found this community. Now I am off to make more tea – Earl Grey – Hot :0)
You wear it on your sleeve more than you think. Think about it this way: “I’m heterosexual” is something you wear on your sleeve. You can safely say “Hey, this is my [heterosexual partner]” to anyone, without fear of reprisal. You can hold hands in public. It’s no big deal.
When a same-sex couple does that, it becomes a risk-assessment exercise: will the person I’m announcing this to (either vocally or telegraphed through my actions) be accepting of it? Or will they make a rude comment? Assault me? Worse? This can happen, even in LA.
Your gay friends came out to you. Because you are their friend. But when you go out in public with your partner (assuming you’re heterosexual), you can be implicitly out with everyone, without having to worry. Not everyone has that ability.
Just food for thought.
Ian McKellan is fictional? =O I never knew. He seems so real in the movies.
On a more serious note. . . yeah. Although, I wonder if it’s those very same accomplishments that made it so hard for him to come out. I mean, people cheat on their wives and crash cars every day, but when someone who’s good at hitting a little white ball with a metal stick does it. . .
I feel like youth are generally more accepting of that sort of thing (depending on where you are, of course, but still) – people would not blink an eye at two guys (or girls) holding hands at school or college.
Though I believe you are wrong in believing homosexuality to be wrong, I am glad you are willing to accept the possibility that you are wrong, and that you have chosen to treat others with respect and dignity.
I’ve known I’m gay since my early teens (mid 1970’s). I had enough of a strike by being non-athletic and super skinny at 16 (5’10” 115 lbs) back in those days you didn’t come out and especially if you were perceived as “different” with my body build.
I grew up going to church but as I entered my teens I started asking WHY to a number of issues. and was always give the party line “it is gods will”. the more they kept applying that line the furthur I grew from beliving unitl I didn’t and still don’t believe in god. Now I live in a very conservative right winger region of Texas, but I digress.
I went into the USAF after high school and I sure as shit had to keep it hidden, which was tough living in male only dorms. LOL One base I was at in New Mexico in the mid 80’s set up a sting for active homo’s on the base. When it was all said and done they dishonorably discharged the military members. I wsa making a career out of it so I kept to my self. Even now it is taboo.
I remember a STNG episode that kinda delt with homosexuality, it was very good.
Thanks Will for posting the words.
peace to all.
“I remember a STNG episode that kinda delt with homosexuality, it was very good.”
Do you happen to remember the name of the episode? Because I thought that there was some controversy about it, something about Roddenberry promising lgbt stuff in STNG, but it never materialised since Roddenberry died short after.
But for general comment on Wil’s original post, I can only say thanks as a gay man. It warms every time people speak up for us.
I really think that you are no one to judge how brave or not it is for Randi to come out. Are you aware of the many slanders that have been perpetrated against him? They have all been proven untrue, but all the same, a gadfly who has many enemies and was born into the early half of the 20th century probably has a perspective and instincts about their own self-protection that you and I lack. Give the guy a bloody break, for pete’s sake.