Washington Spirit player Komi Yokohama comes out as transgender

WASHINGTON SPIRIT

Kumi Yokyama of the Washington Spirit professional soccer team.

Washington Spirit forward Kumi Yokoyama came out as transgender in a video interview on former Japan teammate Yūki Nagasato's YouTube channel.

“I’ve dated several women over the years but I had to stay closeted in Japan,” Yokoyama said in the interview, which was translated by The Japan Times.

“In Japan I’d always be asked if I had a boyfriend, but (in the United States) I’m asked if I have a boyfriend or girlfriend," said Yokoyama, who uses they/them pronouns.

Yokoyama becomes one of the highest-profile Japanese athletes to come out as transgender, saying living in the United States and Germany played a major factor in going public.

“I’ve dated several women over the years but I had to stay closeted in Japan,” Yokoyama said in the interview, which was translated by The Japan Times. “In Japan I’d always be asked if I had a boyfriend, but [in the United States] I’m asked if I have a boyfriend or girlfriend.

“When my girlfriend said there was no reason for me to stay closeted, it really hit me. Coming out wasn’t something I was enthusiastic about, but if I think about my life going forward, it would be harder to live closeted so I found the courage to come out.” 

The 27-year-old said they had top surgery to remove breast tissue seven years ago without hormonal treatments, as taking hormones would have put them at risk of failing doping tests. Yokoyama said they are planning to undergo more gender-affirming procedures once they retire.

“Lately the word ‘LGBTQ’ has become more commonly known in Japan and been covered by the media, but people in my position aren’t able to raise our voices and talk about it,” Yokoyama said. “Japan may be a small country, but if all of us speak up together then we can help raise awareness.”

This season, Yokoyama has played sparingly for the Washington Spirit. The team expressed its support for the player. "We support and are so proud of you Kumi," the team said. "Thank you for showing the world it's ok to embrace who you are!"

Study: LGBTQ Asian Americans are seen as more 'American'

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As Pride Month draws to a close, two related studies have found that Asian Americans who are gay are considered more American than those who are straight, reports Futurity.

Due to stereotypes, Asian Americans are looked at as perpetual foreigners. The studies found being gay seems to diminish that.

“American culture is perceived as more accepting of gay people compared to Asian cultures,” writes a University of Washington research team led by Sapna Cheryan and Mika Semrow, according to Pacific Standard Magazine. “As a result, gay Asian Americans are perceived as more likely to be American than their straight counterparts.”

In the first study, a fictional man named John was identified as either a gay Asian American man or Asian American man. Participants were asked to rate how American John is through questions such as “How fluently do you think this person speaks English?” and “How integrated is this person in American culture?”

In the second study, similar questions were used, but included a variety of fictional people with names popular in the United States in the 80’s. Once again, Asian Americans identified as gay were scored as more American than those who were not identified as gay. There was no perceived difference in score for those identified as White, gay or not.

“These studies demonstrate once again the widely-held assumption that Whites are the most American. Though being gay increased perceptions of Asian Americans’ ‘Americanness,’ it was still not nearly enough to close the gap in perceptions between Asian Americans and Whites,” says Linda Zou, a graduate student and study coauthor, said to The Futurist.

Cheryan pointed out that the study does not mean LGBTQ Asian Americans face less discrimination. Though gay AAPIs may be perceived as less foreign, she says it doesn’t protect against other forms of discrimination and harassment.

“One possible extension of this work is that gay Asian Americans may be less likely to have their American identities questioned than straight Asian Americans,” said Cheryan to the University of Washington. “At the same time, being gay puts people more at risk for other forms of prejudice based on sexual orientation.”

The study from the University of Washington is published in Social Psychological and Personality Science.

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Sunday Read: Texas candiate breaking ground as an LGBTQ Filipina American

Democratic candidate Gina Ortiz Jones and her mother Victoria, a teacher.

June is Pride Month. Gina Ortiz Jones could not only be the first Filipina American in Congress, she could be the first openly gay congressmember from the state of Texas if she beats incumbent Republican, Rep. Will Hurd this November.

"I was talking to some local leaders and they asked me if I would run as openly out. And I said look, given what’s going on right now coming out of Austin and also what’s coming out of Washington D.C." said Ortiz to Tagg magazine.

"I’m going to run as openly gay, openly first generation, openly veteran, openly Asian-American, openly everything. Right now is not the time to be closeted or be ashamed of who you are or who you love," she said.

In the 2018 Mid-terms, she barely lost by a slim 926 votes in the contest for the 23rd Congressional District. Some say if Rep. Beto O'Rourke had endorsed her she would have gained the seat but the wildly popular O'Rourke promised Hurd, one of his best friends in Congress that he would remain neutral in the 23rd Disrict race.

For 2020, O’Rourke, a candidate for the Democratic nomination for POTUS, indicated Wednesday (June 5) that he does not plan to repeat his neutrality vow and, instead, “will be supporting” Ortiz Jones if she emerges victorious in the Democratic primary.Jones acknowledged her contest has significance for the LGBT community. If elected, she’d be the first openly gay person elected to Congress from Texas, according to The Blade.

“I’d be honored to be the first, but it is more important that I am not the last. And that’s what this race is about,” Jones told The Blade. “It’s about protecting all the opportunities that allowed me even just to get to this place, right? So, we are overdue in terms of representation, and I think we’re seeing every single day just how quickly the progress that we fought for can be ripped away from us if we don’t stand up.”

Ortiz Jones is a lesbian first-generation Filipina American who served as an intelligence officer in the Air Force in Iraq under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”In 2017, the former Obama White House staffer tweeted about how she came out to hre Filipina mother. She wrote:

“Mom, I think I like girls.”

My mother replied, not bothering to look up from the magazine she was reading, “I think you just like the clothes that they’re wearing.

And that’s how I came out to my mom at the age of 15. In hindsight, I knew she was just trying to protect me. I think it was difficult for her to accept what I was saying at the time, because she knew it would be harder for me.

And it was. It was hard to fully enjoy my time at Boston University, because the four-year Air Force ROTC Scholarship I earned required that I sign a piece of paper agreeing not to engage in homosexual behavior. Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell was the policy, and my education depended on it. My education depended on me not being able to be me.

It didn’t get any easier when I entered the military. I had the honor of working with some of the finest people I have ever met - true patriots that we should all be thankful made the decision to wear our Nation’s cloth. However, I wish I knew them better, and I wish they knew me better.

The immeasurable cost of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell for me was not being able to form the type of bonds that military members are known for forming with one another. Small talk about weekend plans or questions about my personal life were always exercises in deflection or outright lying. Ironically, the cost to be part of the team, was not being part of the team.

My girlfriend teases me sometimes for not sharing enough about myself on social media, particularly as I endeavor into an arena where people need to know the person, before they want to hear the policies. I can’t help but think that some of that is still related to the precautionary steps I took as a cadet and officer. All this to say, there are effects to not coming out, or feeling as though you’re not able to come out.

Which is why given my personal and professional experiences, I understand “coming out” to be a defiant expression that conveys an understanding of one’s worth and the necessity of their voice in our great American project. Coming out is courageous, and given what we’re facing as a country and as a community, courage can be in no shortage. For some, this journey is easy; for some, it’s still a challenge.

Happy Knowing Your Worth Day

Gina

Lucas Acosta, LGBTQ media director for the Democratic National Committee, said Jones is the right candidate for the LGBT community facing continued hostility from the Trump administration.

“In the face of sustained Republican efforts to roll back the progress we’ve made, leaders within the LGBTQ community, and LGBTQ women of color in particular, are stepping up, running for office and fighting back,” Acosta said. “Ortiz Jones will be a strong advocate not only for her constituents, but also for the LGBTQ community and for all queer women of color, who deserve a voice in Congress.”

Donald Trump's administration has worked to roll back LGBT rights despite his promise during the 2016 election to be a friend to LGBT people. Ortiz Jones rhtorically asked The Blade if Trump has kept that promise.

“The answer is that he has not,” Ortiz Jones told The Blade. “He’s anything but a friend. I mean, with friends like that, who needs enemies?”

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Actor Jake Choi gives tearful HRC speech for the 'Lost' LGBTQ 'Kids like me'

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Jake Choi in tears as he accepts the Human Rights Campaign Visibility Award.

ASAM NEWS

Actor Jake Choi who recently came out as sexually fluid broke down in tears as he accepted the Human Rights Campaign Visibility Award and empathized with kids “thrown out by their families because of who they are.”

The actor, who grew up in Queens, NY,  received the award in Columbus, Ohio on June 2 from The Human Rights Campaign.

Choi who is a series regular on ABC’s Single Parents and co-starred in the recent movie The Sun Is Also A Star recalled his upbringing growing up in a strict Korean immigrant household, reported The Advocate.

“Queerness was not an option I knew about growing up. And add to that our rough neighborhood, where each morning when I left our home, I remembered to wear my straight, hyper-masculine attitude like armor to make it through the day,” he shared.

His role in 2015 portraying a gay character in Front cover helped clarify in his mind his own sexual orientation.

“That self-awareness truly forced me to own my identity and my attractions and to take real pride in who I am,” said Choi.

It wasn’t until the end of his speech when he dedicated his award to others that he broke down and cried.

“Tonight, I remember the kids like me growing up in all kinds of neighborhoods, some afraid, some lost and confused, some thrown out by their families because of who they are or who they love. Some — too many — who have taken their own lives due to bullying either by peers or their families and relatives.”

You can watch the entire 8-minute speech below.

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