Column: Elliot Page’s trans announcement makes me grateful to be raising kids in 2020, flawed and chaotic as it may be
I am grateful to be raising kids in this moment in time — flawed and chaotic and brutal as it is — because of people like Elliot Page, whose courage compelled him to live an authentic, full life and light the way for others to do the same.
Page is the Oscar-nominated star of 2007 1/4 u2032s “Juno,” who also appears in “X-Men: The Last Stand,” “X-Men: Days of Future Past” and the recent Netflix series “The Umbrella Academy.” On Tuesday, he came out as transgender.
“I feel lucky to be writing this,” Page, 33, said in a statement shared on Twitter. “To be here. To have arrived at this place in my life. I feel overwhelming gratitude for the incredible people who have supported me along this journey.”
It wasn’t so long ago that a person — celebrity or not — would go to great, painful lengths to hide this sort of truth: How they identify. Who they love. To do otherwise would have been career suicide. To do otherwise would invite the sort of ostracizing and isolation and shame that makes actual suicide feel like a welcome escape to some.
We’re not altogether past that time; Page referenced as much in his note.
“My joy is real, but it is also fragile,” he wrote. “The truth is, despite feeling profoundly happy right now and knowing how much privilege I carry, I am also scared. I’m scared of the invasiveness, the hate, the ‘jokes’ and of violence. To be clear, I am not trying to dampen a moment that is joyous and one that I celebrate, but I want to address the full picture.
“The statistics are staggering. The discrimination towards trans people is rife, insidious and cruel, resulting in horrific consequences,” he continued. “In 2020 alone, it has been reported that at least 40 transgender people have been murdered, the majority of which were Black and Latinx trans women.”
Transgender youth have significantly higher rates of suicidal ideation and attempts compared to cisgender youth. In 2019, crisis intervention organization The Trevor Project found almost one-third of transgender youth reported being a victim of sexual violence, and more than half reported periods of depression.
We’re a long way from full, enthusiastic inclusivity for people on the LGBTQ spectrum. But we get a little closer to inclusion as the norm every time someone says out loud, however large their platform, “This is who I am.”
Page knows the risks. He knows both the comfort and the confines of keeping the truth a secret. And he spoke up anyway. We witnessed similar courage from Dwyane Wade and Gabrielle Union’s daughter, Zaya, over the past year.
Their courage makes the world an incrementally better, safer, more welcoming place for all of our children. For all of us.
My kids don’t know a different reality. When George Michael — singer of my household’s favorite Christmas song — died at age 53 on Christmas Day four years ago, I tried to explain to them how Michael had to hide his sexuality for most of his life for fear of backlash that would sabotage his pop music career. It made no sense to them. It should make no sense to any of us.
I’m grateful to the brave souls who risk their lives and endure the backlash to nudge us closer to a day when no one has to hide or suffer in silence about something as inherent as their identity.
I’m grateful when these conversations happen publicly, so my kids and I can witness the world evolving in real time. Page’s statement was met with some derision. But it was also met with an outpouring of love and support and affirmation so loud and heartfelt that it left the critics looking about as relevant as rotary phones.
And his impact on the LGBTQ community, I believe, will continue to ripple out for years to come.
Research shows LGBTQ youth with even one accepting, supportive adult are 40% less likely to report a suicide attempt in the past year. I have to believe joyful, confident, clear-eyed coming out announcements like Page’s will help bring more adults around from trepidation to that all-important support.
Page closed his statement this way: “I love that I am trans. And I love that I am queer. And the more I hold myself close and fully embrace who I am, the more I dream, the more my heart grows and the more I thrive. To all trans people who deal with harassment, self-loathing, abuse and the threat of violence every day: I see you, I love you and I will do everything I can to change this world for the better.”
His wife, Emma Portner, wrote this on her Instagram page: “Elliot’s existence is a gift in and of itself. Shine on sweet E. Love you so much.”
A lot about life is complicated and awful right now. This is not. This is love. And truth. And brave people showing us how to embrace both. I’m grateful.
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