Last Word: May 28, 2020

People say the queerest things.

Compiled by Rhuaridh Marr

[She] didn’t understand that that was a gay thing, that that was a person saying, ‘I’m coming out of the closet.’ She didn’t even get that.

—NILE RODGERS, speaking to the New York Post about Diana Ross’ LGBTQ anthem “I’m Coming Out.” Rodgers said that Ross didn’t make the connection between the lyrics and LGBTQ people coming out of the closet until a radio DJ asked if the song was Ross coming out as lesbian.

Today we celebrate freedom, equality and democratic institutions.

—Costa Rican President CARLOS QUESADA, in a tweet celebrating the legalization of marriage equality in the country, making it the first Central American nation to allow same-sex couples to mary. “May empathy and love be the compass that allows us to get ahead and build a country where all people fit,” Quesada added.

What I’ve learned during this pandemic is that shit like this just doesn’t matter.

—CHEYENNE JACKSON, in an Instagram post revealing that he has had five hair transplants to maintain his hairline. Jackson said he was admitting to the surgeries to release the “shame & anxiety I’ve had about people finding out for years.” He added, “I’m trying to teach my kids to accept themselves & to be proud of who they are...so as their father, the example should start with me.”

This finding speaks to the need for bullying prevention efforts and supportive interventions to foster esteem and belonging for LGBTQ youth.

—Yale University epidemiologist KIRSTY CLARK, speaking to UPI about a study she co-authored which found that LGBTQ youth who die by suicide are more likely to have been bullied. Clark added, “Anti-bullying policies that explicitly include sexual orientation and gender identity are critical to reducing bullying and are associated with lower risk of suicide attempts among LGBTQ youth.”

It was a hard day, but we are extremely happy that so many rainbow masks will be worn in LGBT-free zones.

—JAKUB KWIECINSKI, a Polish gay man, speaking in a YouTube video after he and boyfriend Dawid Mycek traveled to so-called “LGBT-free zones” in the country to distribute homemade rainbow masks in an effort to promote tolerance and fight the COVID-19 pandemic. While they were able to distribute a number of masks, they also met some pushback, including one man who said, “Get the fuck out of here or I will punch you in the face.”