Actor Connor Jessup Comes Out as Gay in Touching Instagram Post

Connor Jessup has just come out as gay in a lovely Instagram post.

The actor, who is set to star in Hulu’s long-awaited Locke & Key series, and is presently best known for his roles in American Crime and Falling Skies, penned a touching essay he shared with the public late last night, on his 25th birthday.

“I knew I was gay when I was thirteen, but I hid it for years,” he began. “I’m a white, cis man from an upper-middle class liberal family. Acceptance was never a question. But still, suspended in all this privilege, I balked.”

Jessup goes on to say that he’s finally been out to friends and family for years, but has struggled and continues to struggle with shame over his identity.

“Most painfully, I’ve talked about the gay characters I’ve played from a neutral, almost anthropological distance, as if they were separate from me,” he said.

“Shame can come heavy and loud, but it can come quiet too; it can take cover behind comfort and convenience. But it’s always violent.”

Finally, Jessup shared his reason for coming out publicly: “I don’t want to be complicit, even peripherally, in the idea that being gay is a problem to be solved or hushed. I’m grateful to be gay. Queerness is a solution.”

It’s a beautiful, thoughtful post that will undoubtedly resonate with many LGBTQ people who have struggled with coming out or even the ongoing process of accepting themselves after coming out.

“If you’re gay, bi, trans, two-spirit or questioning, if you’re confused, if you’re in pain or you feel you’re alone, if you aren’t or you don’t: You make the world more surprising and bearable,” he said. “To all the queers, deviants, misfits, and lovers in my life: I love you. I love you. Happy Pride!”