It's National Coming Out Day in some parts of the world

[icon_uk]

...which has been an event since 1988, in the USA, UK and, for some reason, Switzerland.

Initially for coming out as gay, but since extended to include coming out as being anywhere on the LGBTQA+ spectrum.

Now, some people find they come come out without effort, and that's fine, some people put it off, or never come out for whatever reason, and that's fine too (and of course, in some cases it's just not safe to do so), so there is no pressure to come out, but if the focus helps some people, then more power to them!

So how do the comics handle such things?

In recent times it's been a lot more straightforward, as identifying as nonstraight is not automatically the social outcast but 26 years ago... not so easy.

From the dim and distant mists of time, 1991 in fact, in Flash #53 where Wally is shooting the breeze with the now reformed Pied Piper....







Smooth West, reaaaaaal smooth!

This was actually pretty daring back then, Northstar wouldn't come ontil until 1992 (and then in a not so great story) and there were almost no confirmed-on-page-as-anything-other-than-straight characters around... lot's of subtext, or veiled references (Claremont referencing Destiny as Mystique's "leman") but nothing direct.

Just to make it clear, it's obvious (and elaborated on elsewhere in the issue) that Hartley knows full well that Wally is NOT going to be against hm for coming out, but it may take him a little while to process the news, and there are no hard feelings when they talk it over later!

So if today IS the day you come out, congratulations, and if it's not then there's nothing wrong with that either, and you are welcome on scans_daily regardless
 

Comments

[riddler13]

To be honest, I thought it wasn't badly done back then. Too much on the face, obviously.

[locuatico]

I remember last year when the reality show "Survivor" had a trans contestant be forcefully outed by another contestant and every other contestant came to the defense of the trans contestant because what he had done was way beyond boundary lines (and so was unanimously voted out of the show).

the days following that episode's airing, I read someone who pointed out that, just 10 years ago, that same scene may have gone a very diferent direction and that it says something about the progress of trans-rights activism in recent time that everyone there treated forcefully outing someone as such an awful thing.

[balbanes]

I think it's difficult for younger people to understand how different things were back then. When I was growing up, to the extent any movies or TV shows included a gay or lesbian character, it was as a one-note offensive stereotype to be openly mocked by the main cast. And I do mean offensive stereotypes, like "joking" about gay men being pedophiles, or about lesbians being too ugly to get a man but eager to "switch" if a man showed interest (as a cruel joke, natch).

I recall being perplexed at my parents' description of the blatant racism of the 50s and 60s. "How could things be so different such a short time ago?" I thought. And I now find myself in the same position as them, with regard to describing the rampant homophobia I remember in the 80s and early 90s.

[crinos]

I just love that shit eating grin on Piper's face in that second to last panel.

I mean, Piper may be an overall decent guy, and reformed, but he's still a Flash Rogue, so he has to take some amusement in Wally's obvious awkwardness at the situation.

Of course, we also have Piper from the Flash TV series, but the only real indication of him being Gay there is that his asshole parents disowned him over it.

[kamino_neko]

I loved this scene (and Piper's kind of adorable, though I don't like the art as a whole).

[every_spiegel]

That's the first time I see this Hartley guy and I like him already. So chill, much smug!

[dustbunny105]

I do enjoy Wally in the scene after this patting himself on the back for being smooth enough not to tip Hartley off to how uncomfortable he was.