This cover story was about the trend of young homosexuals coming out earlier and in larger numbers than ever before – thanks in part to more real and fictional gay people who are out in popular media and the growth of Gay Student Associations at schools nationwide. “At many schools around the country, it is now profoundly uncool to be seen as anti-gay,” TIME writes. Gay teens, however, still work harder to make sure people are not only seeing them for their sexuality: “a 14-year-old may now feel comfortable telling friends that he likes other boys, but that doesn’t mean he is ready to enfold himself in a gay identity.”
TIME Covers the Gay Rights Movement
Over the last five decades, these six cover stories chronicled both the milestones and the setbacks for homosexual men and women.
“The Battle Over Gay Teens”
October 10, 2005