Harvey Milk’s quote “Burst down those closet doors and stand up once and for all, and start to fight.” Is okay but think first; will coming out put me in danger?
Have a plan on coming out, just don’t blurt out “I’m trans!” Timing is everything; you don’t want to be sitting down at a family Memorial Day picnic pop it out that you are transgender. When I came out I came out to my brother I had a plan and he was the first person that I came out to because I knew he would be the most supportive.
You don’t want to come out to the whole family at once because all it takes is for one person to have a negative reaction and that could sway the rest of the family. You want to build family allies before you come out to your whole family so that they can speak on your behalf.
When you come out at work you want to tell HR first so that they can prepare to tell the whole company. You don’t want to just send out an email to the whole company that says, “Hey everyone, guess what? I’m trans!”
When you are invited to go up on stage during Pride to say a few words on behalf of the trans-community, think first, because that is coming out in a big way. I know someone who did that and ended up on the evening news… me. It was at the Hartford Pride one year at Bushnell Park and while I was on stage I saw this big lens pointed at me. It was the local Fox affiliate and I was on the 11 o’clock news… and who was watching? My brother. Lucky no one recognized me, my brother at that time never had seen me as Diana yet and being dressed as a woman is a pretty good disguise.
So be safe, think before you act.
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