Unhiding The Past: Gay and Lesbian Ancestors | Destination: Austin ...

Today, October 11, is National Coming Out Day and every year I make an effort to honor those in my family tree who are not-so-easily found because of their sexual identity. I also "come out" to the genealogy community as a self-identified gay man.
I Am a Gay Genealogist

Or, perhaps "I'm a genealogist who happens to be gay," would be a better way to express that. Readers may or may not know that I am gay and that I've been "out" to family, friends and colleagues for over 25 years now. When I meet others in the genealogy field, whether it be online or in-person, I don't put my sexuality on the front burner. ?Not only would that be inappropriate, in my opinion, but it doesn't define who I am in the genealogy world.

Being gay is something I'm comfortable with and if it comes up in conversation, so be it. ?I've been on the receiving end of many different responses and reactions to my being gay, positive and negative, including:

• Isn't it difficult being a gay genealogist? Actually, no it isn't. ?I encounter the same record sets, the same brick walls, the same everything that any other genealogist does.

• What about the Mormon influence on genealogy . . . have you had anyone avoid working with you because of your sexual identity? Yes, I've had several people and firms decide not to work with me, most likely due to the "gay" thing, but it isn't just limited to LDS folks. Sometimes people let their personal views impact how they interact with me. ?It's a free country and as far as I'm concerned, it is their loss.

  And as I tell anyone who asks about genealogy and the involvement of the LDS church, I count my Mormon friends and colleagues as some of the best people to work with. Period. I've never had a harsh word towards me nor has there been any attempt to "convert" me in any way. Our focus is on genealogy and family history and we celebrate our common mission in making sure that everyone can find all their ancestors.

• Isn't a bit of an?anomaly?that a gay man with no children would focus on genealogy? I don't see it as odd and if you think that gay men and women don't have a sense of family, then you are mistaken. Many of us are raising our own children or we are a big part of the lives of our cousins, our nieces and nephews and other family members. Everyone has family. And everyone should have the ability to find out more about their family's history.

Ancestors: Come Out, Come Out

The ability to be integrated into society as a gay man or woman is much different than it was 50, 75 or 100 years ago. It is much easier for me than it was for those gay men and women who came before me. Have you ever wondered if someone in your family tree was gay? ?Gay people are often left hidden in our family history, or family members just don't want to talk about them.

In my own genealogy research, my goal is to make sure that each person is fairly and wholly represented and ?each on has an equal voice.

I'm Thomas. I'm a Genealogist. And I'm Gay.

Just in case you didn't know. ?If this is news to you, now that you know, how are things different? ?They aren't. ?You just know more about me than you did a minute ago. ?I'm still the same Thomas.

Photo: Joe and Friend, abt. 1936, Long Island, New York. Personal collection of Thomas MacEntee.

? 2012, copyright Thomas MacEntee

Source: http://destinationaustinfamily.blogspot.com/2012/10/unhiding-past-gay-and-lesbian-ancestors.html

2012 white house correspondents dinner forrest gump bernard hopkins nfl draft grades devils dodgers rachel maddow