Oscar nominated actress Ellen Page recently came out as a lesbian over the weekend at a Las Vegas conference for gay teens.
“I’m here today because I am gay,” the 26-year-old actress said in a speech. “And because … maybe I can make a difference.” Her words drew roaring support from an audience at the Time to Thrive conference sponsored by the Human Rights Campaign.
“I am tired of hiding and I am tired of lying by omission. I feel a personal obligation and a social responsibility.”
Page, who in 2007 played a pregnant teen in Diablo Cody’s Juno alongside Michael Cera, has went on to star in Inception, To Rome with Love, video game Beyond: Two Souls, and the upcoming X-Men: Days of Future Past.
The charismatic actress is currently working on Freeheld, a drama about a terminally ill police detective fighting to assign her retirement benefits to a lesbian lover. In her speech, Page admitted that she suffered for years because she was scared to be public about her sexuality.
“My spirit suffered, my mental health suffered and my relationships suffered,” she said. “And I’m standing here today, with all of you, on the other side of all that pain.”
Page in her speech also praised others who have taken similar steps, such as college athlete Michael Sam, who announced he was gay this month and could become the NFL’s first openly homosexual player.
The Human Rights Campaign, a lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender advocacy group, posted her speech on its website and congratulated Page for completing the “deeply personal and arduous journey” of coming out.
Props: NY Daily News