In an interview with HuffPost Live, YouTube star Tyler Oakley recounted how a tweet from Ricky Martin helped him realized how he impacted the singer’s coming out process.
Oakley: “In 2011, I believe, it was National Coming Out Day … and I woke up one morning [and] I saw a tweet from Ricky Martin. He tweeted me and said, ‘This video helped me make a very important decision in my life. Happy National Coming Out Day.’ And there was a link to my video about how to come out and how it’s important to come out and to do it on your own terms and things like that. And I was just blown away because to me, I was just making videos… but there was a moment when it kind of clicked for me that you never know who is watching and you never know who you can impact and you never know the ripple effect that can happen, just by being yourself.”
The YouTube star also discussed how he came out to his dad and shared his thoughts on being accepted by your loved ones after coming out.
Oakley: “No matter how important society deems your relationship with a person, no matter who they are — mom, dad, whatever — nobody has the right to denounce you for who you are. I feel like it’s hard because people are like, ‘But [he’s] your dad, you should respect [his] opinion.’ And I’m like, ‘No.'”
Watch the full HuffPost Live interview with Tyler Oakley here.
Video: HuffPost Live.
