Actor Hong Seok-cheon publicly expressed his deep feelings
On September 26th, Hong Seok-cheon made a long post revealing that it had been 23 years since he came out.
He said, “September 26th, 2000 is the day I decided to come out”, adding “I was 30 back then. I came out with the thought that I was ready to die because of that decision. But people said, ‘You’re a successful celebrity, earning lots of money and living well. Why did you come out? You could lose everything’.”
He continued, “The time when I felt like everything would be solved if I disappeared has passed and it has become a memory that I can laugh about whenever I talk about it”.
Hong Seok-cheon is the first Korean entertainer to come out as gay.
Appearing on the YouTube content “Fearless Kkura” in April, he said, “I was only focusing on making ends meet at the beginning. Then I came out and couldn’t do broadcasts for three years because I mentioned my identity”.
Hong Seok-cheon continued, “People don’t let me do broadcast. They said things like, ‘Don’t appear on shows’, ‘I don’t want to see you’, ‘You’re annoying’, etc., While staying at home without a job, I started running a restaurant as I almost ran out of money”.
Below is the full text of Hong Seok-cheon’s post
“September 26th, 2000. I came out on this day 23 years ago.
At the age of 30, I came out with the thought that I was ready to die because of that decision. But people said,
‘You’re a successful celebrity, earning lots of money and living well. Why did you come out? You could lose everything’
I just wanted to live happily, I didn’t want to lie to anyone and I was at the age where I could start again even if I lost everything I had. I didn’t think that opportunity was a waste.
People criticized me, threatened to kill me, and kicked me out of shows. I couldn’t get out of my house for a month because I was scared. My parents and family members cried every day.
The time when I felt like everything would be solved if I disappeared has passed and it has become a memory that I can laugh about whenever I talk about it.
No matter how tiring and hard life is that makes you want to run away, if you endure it all with positive energy, good days will come to you soon. Let’s cheer up.
There have been many changes over the past 23 years.
Even if I were a small spark, I’m still satisfied with that. Let’s all live happily.”
Source: Wikitree
