America's Obsession with Queer Culture

(Posted by Nick, '11)

Wednesday, September 24, was a momentous day: both Clay Aiken and Lindsay Lohan came out. Lohan did so by casually mentioning the length of her relationship with Samantha Ronson on a radio program, Clay Aiken in People magazine, saying that "he cannot raise a child to lie or hide things." While it is very admirable that both of them could bring themselves to acknowledge their sexuality, at the same time, we must look at their "track records."

Lohan has been dating Ronson for several months, and wouldn't admit to being with her until now. She would intentionally skirt around the subject if it was brought up in interviews. Aiken, on the other hand, has at times out-and-out denied his being gay, yet in a new interview with People magazine says he came out to his mother four years ago.

Thus we see the emergence of the new gay celebrity: the one who sees sexuality as being an intensely personal thing, that it belongs in the private sphere and not in the public realm. This defies stereotype, as many perceive the "typical" gay to be "out and proud."

At the same time, there was a huge flurry of media speculation around Lohan, and whether she was dating Ronson - Perez Hilton even nicknamed her "LesLo." As for both Lohan and Aiken, I can't say it was surprising to me that they're queer, and I doubt it was surprising to much of America. Even so, on Wednesday at about noon, the most popular headline on CNN wasn't the financial crisis or the nuclear re-armament of North Korea, but "Lohan confirms she's dating woman." Clay, not to be forgotten, rounded out the top 10 at number 10. America has become entranced by the gay celebrity, following those who might be gay with fervor unmatched.