helped the U.S. team take the Gold at the
2012 Summer Olympics Women where she
and the team redeemed their loss to Japan at
2011’s World Cup. In November, the Los An-
geles Gay and Lesbian Center awarded Rapi-
noe the Board of Directors Award for being a
LGBT role model in sports. In speaking of the
barriers the LGBT community faces, Rapinoe
said, “I think more people in general need to
come out. Until that happens, we can’t expect
all these barriers to be broken down.”
Anderson Cooper
Anderson Cooper is a busy man. The Emmy
award-winning journalist hosts Anderson
Cooper 360 o , works as a correspondent for 60
Minutes, and until recently even hosted his
own talk show, Anderson Live. Cooper had
said in the past that discussing his personal
life would undermine his work as a journal-
ist, and considering the places his work has
taken him, potentially endanger his life. The
announcement came in an email with writer/
blogger Andrew Sullivan. “The fact is, I’m
gay, always have been, always will be, and I
couldn’t be any more happy, comfortable
with myself, and proud. Like others on this
list, Cooper felt that visibility is key, saying,
“I’ve also been reminded recently that while
as a society we are moving toward greater
inclusion and equality for all people, the tide
of history only advances when people make
themselves fully visible.”
Frank Ocean
Hip-hop star Frank Ocean’s career is still in
its early days, yet the 25-year-old has gained
notoriety for writing songs for Justin Bieber,
John Legend, and Beyoncé, as well as his de-
but album, Channel Orange, which garnered
rave reviews from Spin, Rolling Stone, and
The Guardian. Ocean also gained national
attention for a letter he posted on his blog,
in which he discussed his previous love with
another man. Ocean has since avoided label-
ing his sexuality definitively, saying in a GQ
interview, “You can’t feel a box. You can’t feel
a label. Don’t get caught up in that shit…”
Genre mainstays Russell Simons, Jay-Z, Be-
yoncé, and Tyler, The Creator, whom Ocean
collaborates with in the collective Odd Fu-
ture, have all shown him support. Much like
with boxer Orlando Cruz, Ocean may be the
start of a much larger movement to come. §
Scott MacDonald is an award winning young journalist
originally from Idaho. He writes The Simple Truth for
Just Out. Reach Scott at Scott@JustOut.com
January 2013
JustOut.com
15