Kenji Yoshino

There was one pivotal conversation that became a touchstone for my young adult life where he at one point said, can you just describe to me what it feels like to be attracted to somebody? Like, who are you attracted to? Describe someone who is attractive. And I said, I absolutely cannot do that because it is perverted. And he said, in words that I will never forget, it is not perverted.

There was one pivotal conversation that became a touchstone for my young adult life where he at one point said, can you just describe to me what it feels like to be attracted to somebody? Like, who are you attracted to? Describe someone who is attractive. And I said, I absolutely cannot do that because it is perverted. And he said, in words that I will never forget, it is not perverted.

There was one pivotal conversation that became a touchstone for my young adult life where he at one point said, can you just describe to me what it feels like to be attracted to somebody? Like, who are you attracted to? Describe someone who is attractive. And I said, I absolutely cannot do that because it is perverted. And he said, in words that I will never forget, it is not perverted.

It is thwarted. And that sort of paradigm shift from thinking about my own desires as being something that were properly stigmatized to thinking that this is actually just something that is blocked was just a transformative shift in my own thinking.

It is thwarted. And that sort of paradigm shift from thinking about my own desires as being something that were properly stigmatized to thinking that this is actually just something that is blocked was just a transformative shift in my own thinking.

It is thwarted. And that sort of paradigm shift from thinking about my own desires as being something that were properly stigmatized to thinking that this is actually just something that is blocked was just a transformative shift in my own thinking.

I was not. And I think about this as a movement from one phase of assimilation to another. So if the first phase was trying to convert and responding to really the demand for conversion, which I experienced in society at large, the second phase was, I'm not going to convert, but I am going to pass.

I was not. And I think about this as a movement from one phase of assimilation to another. So if the first phase was trying to convert and responding to really the demand for conversion, which I experienced in society at large, the second phase was, I'm not going to convert, but I am going to pass.

I was not. And I think about this as a movement from one phase of assimilation to another. So if the first phase was trying to convert and responding to really the demand for conversion, which I experienced in society at large, the second phase was, I'm not going to convert, but I am going to pass.

And what I mean by that is I had by that point accepted the fact that I was gay and I was not trying to change the underlying identity. But I was nonetheless extremely closeted and not willing to share that identity with anyone in the community around me.

And what I mean by that is I had by that point accepted the fact that I was gay and I was not trying to change the underlying identity. But I was nonetheless extremely closeted and not willing to share that identity with anyone in the community around me.

And what I mean by that is I had by that point accepted the fact that I was gay and I was not trying to change the underlying identity. But I was nonetheless extremely closeted and not willing to share that identity with anyone in the community around me.

And I really debated whether or not I should take the class because I thought if I sign up for this class, it's a very small community. The class lists are all posted in the hallway. And the moment where I put my name on that list, I have effectively outed myself to the entire community, I thought.

And I really debated whether or not I should take the class because I thought if I sign up for this class, it's a very small community. The class lists are all posted in the hallway. And the moment where I put my name on that list, I have effectively outed myself to the entire community, I thought.

And I really debated whether or not I should take the class because I thought if I sign up for this class, it's a very small community. The class lists are all posted in the hallway. And the moment where I put my name on that list, I have effectively outed myself to the entire community, I thought.

At that time, the only people who would be caught, you know, taking a class called sexual orientation in the law were members of the LGBTQIA plus community and then maybe some woman, some righteous straight woman. But a straight man would not be caught, you know, touching a class like this with a 10-foot pole.

At that time, the only people who would be caught, you know, taking a class called sexual orientation in the law were members of the LGBTQIA plus community and then maybe some woman, some righteous straight woman. But a straight man would not be caught, you know, touching a class like this with a 10-foot pole.

At that time, the only people who would be caught, you know, taking a class called sexual orientation in the law were members of the LGBTQIA plus community and then maybe some woman, some righteous straight woman. But a straight man would not be caught, you know, touching a class like this with a 10-foot pole.

This was a point of real tension in my relationship with him because Paul, quite rightly, felt that I was downplaying him or hiding him in ways that suggested I was ashamed of the relationship and that he really deserved better. And the idea of holding somebody's hand in public or... showing public displays of same-sex affection were all sort of verboten at this time for me.

This was a point of real tension in my relationship with him because Paul, quite rightly, felt that I was downplaying him or hiding him in ways that suggested I was ashamed of the relationship and that he really deserved better. And the idea of holding somebody's hand in public or... showing public displays of same-sex affection were all sort of verboten at this time for me.