Gay lawmaker gives tear-jerking first speech and it’s beautiful
the Greens.Bates’ campaign made headlines for using Grindr to push humorous ads to local gay men, encouraging them to help him come out “top” in the election.Related: Political candidate places ads on Grindr, wants to come ‘top’ in electionBates defeated Liberal-National Party incumbent Trevor Evans with 53.5 percent of the vote.This week, he made his first official speech as an MP.
It proved an emotional moment for the former Apple store worker. Besides talking about climate change and mental health, he spoke of his own struggles to come out.He said he knew he was gay as a teenager but “did everything in (his) power to hide it.”“I told myself I would force myself to get married to a woman, have kids and live in the suburbs,” he said.“Because that is what you did, that is what you had to do, that is what was expected of me.”You can watch below from the 7.15 mark.Bates became emotional as he recalled the love and support of his family.“I was lucky enough to have a very supportive …” he said, struggling to hold back a tear before continuing. “… To have a very supportive family to come out to.“But I spent years hiding myself because I could not see anyone in my world who was openly gay.He takes a moment to compose himself, telling his fellow MPs, “This is so much harder than I thought it would be.”He continued, “I made a promise to myself once I came out that if I ever found myself in a public role, that I would be open and proud of who I am.“That I would be that person that I never saw growing up, because if I can help even one person out there then my life will have been worth it.”He then spoke of how mentioning his partner, Scott, in his campaign materials had prompted a letter from a mom.
