It's that time of the year again when we celebrate sexuality and coming out. In this time and age, going all out as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer is becoming more common and acceptable to some parts of the country. Despite the positivity, criticisms and objections are still inevitable. These make coming out hard enough to those who have concealed their true sexuality for a long time.
But things might be easier for them now as celebrities have taken that bold and brave step to come out proudly, serving as an inspiration to those who are still hiding in the closet. Being a public figure, these stars can truly inspire those who still shy away from their true sexuality.
On this special day, we come up with four famous celebrities who came out loud and proud in 2016. From famous Hollywood stars to former national athletes, we've got you covered. Check out our list and details below.
Kristen Stewart And Her Public Confession Of Love
Among all the other celebrities who came out this year, actress Kristen Stewart seems to be, by far, the most notable of them all. Being an A-list celebrity who is known to be "private" with her previous relationships, Stewart made that bold move as she went public with girlfriend Alicia Cargile. She even gushed about the love of her life, saying, "Look how cute she is," Stewart told NY Times in August. "I love her so much."
The "Twilight" actress also revealed how everything changed when she started going out with girls. Stewart claims that she is now more open to talk about her relationship because of the positive acceptance it represents.
"I would never talk about any of my relationships before, but once I started dating girls it seemed like there was an opportunity to represent something really positive," she explained. "I still want to protect my personal life, but I don't want to seem like I'm protecting the idea, so that does sort of feel like I owe something to people."
Recently, Stewart graced the cover of "Elle" magazine's "Women In Hollywood" and proudly opened up about her love life and sexuality, a positive thing for her fans who are still in the hiding. In the interview, the actress bares all, saying, "I'm not ashamed and I'm not confused," the 26-year-old actress told Elle. "Things have changed. And not just with me - we're really allowed to encourage this new acceptance to develop and be awesome."
Bruce Jenner's Transition To Caitlyn
Before being publicly attached to the Kardashian family, Bruce Jenner already made his own name as an Olympic gold medallist in 1976. Now, the former decathlete made it to the headlines once again but this time, as a completely transformed Caitlyn Jenner.
Bruce Jenner can be remembered as the manly and athletic father on the popular reality show "Keeping Up With The Kardashians." However, things took a different turn as the patriarch of the family came out with his true sexuality.
In an interview with Diane Sawyer, Bruce Jenner publicly confessed of being a transgender and identified himself as female. The 66-year-old former champion also announced on Twitter that she is a woman, now known as Caitlyn.
Caitlyn opened up about having hormone treatments, sexual orientation and emotional experiences of admitting everything to her children. Although her coming out was criticized, Caitlyn never lets any of those faze her. In fact, she became more public about her life and transition. She graced the cover of "Vanity Fair's" July 2015 cover, launched her own reality show called "I am Cait" and will write a memoir of her journey as Caitlyn that is set to release in 2017.
Colton Haynes Being "Happier Than Ever"
"Teen Wolf" and "Arrow" star Colton Haynes also proudly came out as gay following a cryptic Tumblr post by a user, saying, "When I found out Colton Haynes had a secret gay past, I got so excited even though I know it makes absolutely no difference in my life."
The 27-year-old actor responded with, "Was it a secret? Let's all just enjoy life & have no regrets :)" The said post instantly confirmed Haynes sexuality. However, it was later revealed that the actor has been out to his family, friends and cast members for years, but chose to be tight-lipped about the matter.
Haynes' sexuality has been a subject of speculations for quite a while. And in May, the actor settled everything once and for all. "I should have made a comment or a statement, but I just wasn't ready," he revealed in an interview with Entertainment Weekly. "I didn't feel like I owed anyone anything. I think in due time, everyone has to make those decisions when they're ready, and I wasn't yet. But staying in the closet was painful. People want you to be that GQ image that you put out, but people don't realize what it's like to act 24 hours a day. I'd go home and I was still acting."
Bella Thorne Comes Out As Bi-Sexual
The 19-year-old actress and singer came out as a bi-sexual in Twitter Q&A. Thorne's admission was blunt and simple. A user asked, "Are you bi-sexual?" To which she replied a straight "Yes." Since then, numerous rumors surfaced online about the young actress' sexuality.
Following her admission, Thorne has been linked to her brother's ex-girlfriend, Bella Pendergast. The two have been close friends for years. However, many speculate that there something special between the two. In fact, the pair never shies away from expressing their affection to each other. Thorne even called Pendergast her "soulmate" despite being in a relationship with her now ex-boyfriend, Gregg Sulkin.
And just recently, Thorne made headlines again when she flaunted her new beau, Tyler Posey, via Instagram. The couple has been keeping their fans updated about their blossoming romance as they share their sweet moments together.
Coming out can really be challenging. One has to face all the scrutiny of watchful eyes, ready to nitpick even the littlest detail possible. But these celebrities have proven that being true to yourself is the only way to be genuinely happy in life.
Everyone deserves to be happy regardless of sexuality. Let us all celebrate life and coming out proudly not just today but for as long as there's someone out there who keeps hiding in the closet.
