John Byrne (JB)

JB: I would make the kids line up before they came into class, and then they would stand by their desks and I would say, ”You may sit down when I sit down.” They said, ”Good morning, Mr. Byrne.”

I was very strict because I was afraid kids would discover I was gay. I’m an English teacher. You know, you’re teaching literature, and some gay scene or character would come up, and I would start to blush. I was always frightened… until one year I decided to march in the St Patrick’s day parade. Because they refused to let the gays march and I thought, ”I’ve got to take a stand.”

So I went and marched with them. And the next day I went to school, and the kids said to me, ”Where you were you yesterday? It was St. Patrick’s day, you were drunk!” I said, ”I was not! I was marching in the parade.” And they said, ”Well, who were you marching with?” and I said, ”The Irish Gay and Lesbian Organization” and they said, ”Well why were you marching with them?” and I said, ”Because I’m gay!”

And they were so kind, and they saw that I was nervous and they helped me along. You know, it had hurt me to live in the shadows and then when I came out it freed me to teach, it made me better at helping kids who had their own particular secrets. Two years later, that class that I came out to, they asked me to be their graduation speaker. And I talked to the parents about how proud they should be of their children for having taught me and helped me through a really difficult time in my life. It was a wonderful turning point.