Coming out of the closet: negotiating social and physical spaces

Abstract

In South Africa, as elsewhere, despite bisexual, political, legal and educational reforms, lesbian, gay, lesbians, and transgender youth (LGBTIQ+) continue to battle against homophobia in their daily lives (Butler & Astbury, 2005; Gedro, 2009; Naidoo & Mabaso, 2014; Chikovore & Naidoo, 2016). Sexual orientation prejudice contributes to stress and confusion as LGBTIQ+ people come to terms with their identities (Diaz et al., 2001; Reddy. 2001 Everett, 2015). When LGBTIQ+ people ultimately make a decision toa cknowledge their sexual orientation and come out to others, it is often a difficult decision and a process with many possible routes and outcomes (Naidoo & Mabaso, 20 14; Everett, 2015). Coming out' is a term used to describe the process of acknowledging, accepting and appreciating one's self-identification with a particular sexual orientation and disclosing this understanding to other people (Galatzer-Levy & Cohler, 2002; Ward & Winstanley, 2005; Shilo & Savaya. 2011). The complexity of the process of forming a gay identity is highlighted in the six stage Cass Model, where firstly, identity confusion involves individuals beginning to question and experience confusion about their sexual orientation.