Ellenの部屋7『Ellen Meets Inspiring Mormon Valedictorian』

今回は、大学の卒業式の卒業生代表スピーチでゲイであることをカミングアウトしたMatthewさんがゲストの回です。彼が、多くの人の前でカミングアウトすることを決断するに至った理由がとても素晴らしいものであったので、ぜひ動画をご覧ください。

動画はこちらから。

彼についての記事はこちらから。

Student comes out as 'a gay son of god' during Mormon university valedictorian speech

おおまかな流れ

0:00～ BYUについて
0:44～ カミングアウトした理由について
1:33～ ゲイがそいう学校に行くのはどんな感じなのかについて
4:12～ 父親について
4:55～ 将来の夢について

チェックした英文

■ because that's bold (0:46)
【訳】 なぜなら、それはとても大胆だ。
・bold → 大胆

boldの意味・使い方・読み方 | Weblio英和辞書

■ it's something I've been wrestling with my whole life.
【訳】それは私の人生を通じて取り組んできたことなんです。
・wrestling with → 取り組み

wrestling withの意味・使い方 - 英和辞典 WEBLIO辞書

■ did you almost chicken out or how did you feel?
【訳】あなた怖気づきましたか？またはどのように感じましたか？
・chikin out

Chicken, Chicken Out の意味 チキンレースは和製英語？ - 英会話教材 - サンドイッチ英会話

■ I could be expelled for it.(2:07)
【訳】 わたしはそのせいで追放される。
・expelled for

expelの意味・使い方・読み方 | Weblio英和辞書

Ellen: Well, first of all, you're a brave man. It's a hard thing to do-- to come out. It's a very, very difficult thing for a lot of people. And for you to do it--
first of all, congratulations for being that brave. And then to do it at your commencement speech at BYU-- tell everyone about BYU-- if they don't understand. 
Matthew: Yeah, so I just graduated from Brigham Young University. It's a college in Utah. And we're known for our very strict honor code. So we agree before we go-- we can't drink alcohol, smoke tobacco, and we can't enter into gay relationships. So that means no holding hands-- no kissing. So it's pretty tough there sometimes. Especially, if you're gay.
Ellen: OK. Yeah.  Yeah, or want to drink.  All right, so what made you decide that that's how you were going to come out, in front of-- because that's bold.
Matthew: Thank you. Yeah. So it's something I've been wrestling with my whole life. And I thought-- you know, should I do it, should I not. And ultimately, I decided there's no better place to do it than here. I thought-- I'm ready, this is a new chapter in my life. I'm graduating and I want to live more authentically, live more honestly. And more than that, I want to give visibility to the other students who are gay-- who maybe aren't so ready to come out. 
Ellen: Yeah, well you heard people responding when you talked about the community. So were you nervous when you were-- did you almost chicken out or how did you feel?
Matthew: Yeah. Oh my gosh. My hands were so sweaty. I was so nervous. I was going back and forth. Well, I'm going to do this-- no, I'm not going to do it. I'm going to do it-- I'm not going to do it. And I got right up there and it just felt so right. I was so ready to do it.
Ellen: Yeah. Well, that's fantastic. So there are certain things that I know that I'm not allowed to ask you. What are those things?
Matthew: Man, Ellen. So as I said before, our honor code is very strict-- that we agreed to live by. So I couldn't-- if there was somebody I liked, I couldn't kiss them-- kiss him or hug him or even maybe shake his hand. If somebody saw me--
Ellen: Wait-- if you like someone, you can't shake their hand?
Matthew: I mean, potentially, any signs or show of homosexual feelings-- so potentially--  I have a male friend. If I gave him a hug, somebody could report me to the honor code and I could be expelled for it. 
Ellen: Even if he's just your friend?
Matthew: Even if he's just my friend.
Ellen: OK. All right. 
Matthew: And it's really scary. As a gay student, I'm trying to figure out my feelings understand my faith, and on top of it I have-- everybody is watching me. And I'm so worried and afraid of losing all that I've worked for academically.
Ellen: Right. Because you're still Mormon. You want to be a Mormon, but you want to also live your authentic life-- like you said. That must be very confusing. Yeah, something I've got to deal with every single day. I'm still dealing with it.
Matthew: Yeah. And is that why you waited until graduation to come out-- because it is such a hard thing to be in that honor code, in that school?
Yeah, exactly. And actually, I'm not sure if you're aware-- the white thing that I'm wearing around my neck in my graduation-- it's called a Stole of Honor.
And so when you wear that, you get to choose somebody to honor. And so I actually decided to choose someone that was in one of my classes my freshman year-- so it was my second semester. And I chose to honor student named Harry Fisher. So he-- it was his last semester, and he was sort of in a similar situation as I was, and he decided to come out on Facebook. And because of the rhetoric and the response that he got from our community, he actually ended up committing suicide. You know, and he sat right in front of me, and I saw him do that, and I thought-- is that my future. Is that what I'm headed toward? So I thought-- if I came out at graduation, maybe a student like me-- a freshman-- gets to know my future is something brighter. It's something better-- we can succeed. We can do what we want and accomplish our dreams. And so that's why I chose to come out there.
Ellen: It really is-- it's all about visibility. And I think a lot of times, some people want to keep us quiet and pushed away because they don't understand it or they're fearful-- and for different reasons. And I think that we all want to be seen. You know? Whoever we are, we should all be seen.
Matthew: Absolutely.
Ellen: And so what you did was pretty amazing. Because-- and especially to be here. You are going to be seen by a lot of young people that say, I can be happy-- I can be successful. And I know your dad had some-- this is amazing. Tell everyone what your dad said.
Matthew: Yeah, so the night before, I told my dad-- hey, listen-- I think I'm going to include this in my speech. I just want you to be aware. And I'm really worried about how my aunts and uncles are going to respond, my grandparents, and beyond that. And my dad looked at me and he said, Matt--
if people have a problem with what you're going to say-- it's a problem with them, not with you. We love you, we're here for you, and that's all that matters.
Ellen: That's a good dad.
Matthew: He's a great dad.
Ellen: Yeah. That's a good dad.
Matthew: Thank you.
Ellen: All right, so what do you want to do when you graduate?
Matthew: Well, I'm moving up to Salt Lake City. I'm going to start a new internship there-- I'm hoping long term. I studied political science-- I'd love to make it out to D.C. or somewhere. But in the meantime, just looking for a new place. And I'd really, really love to get involved with the LGBTQ community in Salt Lake. For a long time, I've been really afraid and kind of scared to participate. And now is my time to shine. I'm ready to live authentically and I want to get involved.
Ellen: That's great. Well, Dan Reynolds did a lot for that community there too.
Matthew: Yeah, he's awesome.
Ellen: Yeah, he's amazing. Dan Reynolds from Imagine Dragons did a documentary that was incredible. Well my friends at Shutterfly love inspiring stories like yours, and they want to give you a check for $10,000 to help you do whatever you want.
Matthew:  Oh, my gosh!
Ellen: All right, Matt-- we'll be right back.