In 1998, I was outed as gay to my father by school administrators. It was late in the afternoon when I heard my name called on the intercom to go to the principal’s office. My heart sank, and I awkwardly stood up and left the class, all eyes on me. I told one person I was gay a day before and had become consumed with paranoia that everyone else now knew. It seemed I was right.
That day would forever change my life as I sat at the end of a large oval table with school administrators, a police officer, and my father at the other end, listening to them discuss what had been my most private secret only days before. It was a nightmare scenario, and one so many in my generation knew too well. It’s why those of us who grew to become LGBT activists and politicians have been so adamant about preventing schools from repeating this behavior, known as “outing.”
California State Sen. Scott Wiener announced on June 13, “Today we passed critical legislation to ban forced outing policies and ensure trans youth can decide for themselves if, when and how to come out to their parents. Forced outing puts kids at risk of violence and homelessness. Coming out is a personal decision and no one else’s business.”
State Sen. Susan Talamantes Eggman, D-Stockton, who introduced the bill, recounted her own experience being outed in high school by school administrators, and argued, “Kids have a right to
