David Archuleta talks of struggle to replace feelings of shame with pride
A post shared by David Archuleta (@davidarchie)Former American Idol contestant David Archuleta has posted a lengthy message to his Instagram followers, a year after he publicly came out.Prompted by Pride Month, Archuleta, 31, has a simple message for everyone: “Dare to be you.”Last June, the Mormon-raised singer, who came second on the seventh season of the show in 2008, publicly came out via an Instagram post.
He said then he was uncertain of his sexuality and thought he might be bisexual.He has since talked about the challenges he faced accepting his sexuality, due largely to his faith and the messages he received from those around him.In his latest post, he talks at length about his attempts to be straight, including considering marriage with three different women.“A year ago I was pulling weeds and felt in my heart I needed to open up about something that before I always considered unthinkable.
Unimaginable. Always considered my greatest fear,” he began.“But that day I felt peace with myself. I wasn’t afraid anymore of who all of me meant.
Even if that meant I liked guys.“I didn’t plan to come out during pride month. It was just the natural flow of events the days prior coming to terms with myself and deciding to say it out loud after ending an engagement I had to a great and understanding girl just a couple weeks before.“I didn’t want to hide anymore.
