Jake Shears is proud of Anderson
Cooper's recent coming out gay.
Cooper, a CNN correspondent and daytime
talk show host, came out gay earlier this year after ducking rumors
for years.
Shears, a member of the band Scissor
Sisters, stopped short of saying he regretted coming out at 15 in an
interview with RucoComingOut.com.
“I can't really say I totally
regretted it but it was something I probably shouldn't have done at
the time,” Shears said. “The reaction was pretty bad and I had
very few allies. It really made the rest of the year pretty
miserable for me. There was a lot of untethered bullying happening,
going totally unchecked by teachers and other staff who watched it
happen first hand. When kids ask me for advice about coming out, I
always ask them to really examine their surroundings first.”
Public figures, he added, have a
responsibility to come out.
“I think gay celebrities at least
have the responsibility to come out. It can be tricky though. My
very good pal, Anderson Cooper, finally came out publicly this year,
and though it was hard for him as a journalist, I was so proud that
he finally did it.”