It has been one year since Jason Brown came out as gay in a dedicated post on Instagram.
The post, which gathered more than 23 thousand likes and over one thousand comments, displayed Brown smiling in front of a "Love Wins" mural. However, the creation of the post,and the decision to come out publicly, had been on Brown's mind for a long time.
"Everyone goes through their own identity discovery and figuring out who they are as they grow up," Brown started. "I really wasn't focused on the personal side of my life because I was so focused on skating. But, when the world stopped for COVID, I was pulled out of the constant training environment."
Like many, the two-time Olympian's eyes and ears were opened to discussions around social justice and equity as the Black Lives Matter movement erupted across the country and the U.S. Supreme Court ruled the 1964 Civil Rights Act also protects gay, lesbian and transgender employees from discrimination based on sex.
"I don't know if it was that I was naive or because I had been in my own world, but I thought we were past all of that," reflected Brown. "I started to have an inkling that I really wanted to say something. But, every time I tried to put it on paper or vocalize it, it never felt right."
Brown journaled off and on for more than a year about his experiences and his identity, but none of his entries conveyed what he felt needed to be shared. Then, one night last June, he woke up in the middle of the night and was inspired to write. Minutes later, his thoughts unfolded into his famous Instagram post.
"It finally felt right," Brown said. "It was natural and came right off the heart. It was exactly the way I intended it to be."
In his post, Brown talks about being "surrounded by beautiful, strong, proud, successful and supportive LGBTQ+ role models" throughout his life. Growing up, Brown had a number of coaches and choreographers who identified as gay and would often bring their partners to the ice rink. Within his own family, Brown has five cousins who identify with the LGBTQ+ community.
"I think I come from a family that would be accepting no matter what," Brown shared. "But having [cousins who are a part of the LGBTQ+ community] present in my upbringing normalized it in our family."
Within his more immediate family, Brown is incredibly close to his parents,
especially his dad – who drove him to the ice rink every morning for practice at the start of his career
– and his siblings. According to Brown, his parents are the most accepting and loving people in the entire world.
When he decided to come out to them on vacation in the spring of 2017, they showed their son nothing but excitement and desire to be included in future conversations regarding Brown's love life.
"I've always been able to be whoever I wanted to be. They just embraced me, and they always made me feel loved and accepted," Brown said. "When I came out to them, I didn't come out and say, 'Oh, I'm gay.' I told them I had started dating a guy."
Brown's mother had long wanted to ask about her son's romantic life but wanted to wait until he came to her with the topic. Meanwhile, Brown's dad asked more questions and wanted to learn more about the man his son was dating.
"It was just a really sweet touching thing," Brown added.
Brown's parents have always traveled to see their son perform in competitions across the world. Their son said being there for the monumental moments in their kids' lives is one of the most important things to them. Even before Brown became famous, the family would rotate between all of the kids' games, practices and extracurricular events on the weekends. Even though Brown's coming out story to his family was a natural moment, it was, nonetheless, a milestone his family wanted to share with him.
"I feel like [my mom] knew [I was gay] way before I did," Brown laughed. "It's a mom's intuition. [She and my dad] were just waiting for me to open that door for them."
Now that Brown has also opened that door of conversation for the public, he feels he can be his most authentic self and provide representation and advocacy for the LGBTQ+ community. Since coming out, Brown has received nothing but support from fans and fellow athletes. Notably, he was one of (a record) 36 openly out LGBTQ+ athletes at the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022, where he placed sixth.
"At this point, It's really important for me to be visible. I see just how critical representation is," Brown explained. "Once I saw [the importance of representation], I knew I had to step up and be a voice."
Now that he accomplished his goal of returning to the Olympics – the 27-year-old first competed at the Games in 2014 and won a bronze medal with Team USA – he is hoping to continue his advocacy through strength, openness and honesty. While he has already made an impact, he is hoping to further educate himself in social justice issues in hopes of being a better advocate and ally to other communities. For the LGBTQ+ community, he wants to break down stereotypes and support others who may be struggling with their identities.
"I think there's nothing more beautiful than for a person to just be themselves and know how valuable you are and what you bring to the table," Brown said."We [members of the LGBTQ+ community] are all so different and so incredible and beautiful and amazing and all had their own stories."
