Another Actor Comes Out

Luke Macfarlane, the Canadian actor who plays Scotty Wandell on TV's Brothers & Sisters, has come out of the closet in an interview with the Globe and Mail in which he explains why he's decided to go public with his own sexuality. Personally, I believe that for well know actors and other public figures to come out publicly is one of the best means to counter the Christianists who seek to depict LGBT individuals as stereotypical carricatures and/or freaks. The more middle America sees normal gays in varying careers, the harder it is for the Christianist to continue their campaign of lies and decit. I applaud Macfarlane for his courage. Here are some highlights from the interview:

LOS ANGELES — Next month, in the season finale of his hit television series Brothers & Sisters, Canadian actor Luke Macfarlane will dress his best and say his vows as his character, Scotty Wandell, marries his partner, Kevin Walker. But the episode also holds personal resonance for Macfarlane, who wants to be married himself some day, and has finally decided to go public with his own sexual orientation.

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Though no secret to his family and close friends, Macfarlane has, until now, been guarded about his personal life as a gay man. Over lunch in Los Angeles, where he lives, he initially insists that he has no concerns about his public revelation - but a few seconds later he is shifting nervously in his chair, and concedes that he is "terrified." "I don't know what will happen professionally ... that is the fear, but I guess I can't really be concerned about what will happen, because it's my truth.

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The episode, which started shooting yesterday and will air on May 11 on ABC and Global, is a monumental step in television culture, he says. "From a standing outside perspective, and also as someone who is gay, I think that it's a very exciting time. How exciting that we're saying, 'This can be part of the cultural fabric, now,' because it is two series regulars, two people that you invite into your home and you see every week.

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"Most importantly, in portraying gay people, the more we realize it's just like portraying anybody else and, gay marriage, it's not about two people being gay, it's about two people who love each other and who have decided to commit to each other for the exact same reasons any other couple would get married. Hopefully, the more that becomes part of the cultural awareness it won't be," he pauses and says, employing a mock, exaggerated voice of a television announcer, "a spectacular Sunday episode."