Out fitness celebrity Jillian Michaels
talks about coming out in an interview with Cosmopolitan.
The 42-year-old Michaels came out in
2012. She and her fiance Heidi Rhoades have two children. Their
daughter was adopted in Haiti. The women's lives are the subject of
the E! reality series Just Jillian.
When asked whether she regrets not
coming out sooner, Michaels answered that it was necessary to remain
in the closet to get around discriminatory adoption rules.
“[T]hat's what needed to happen in
order to get around the adoption system,” she said.
“We started out looking in Ethiopia,
where I put both of our names on the form, and they refused to work
with us. I was like, 'Wait a second, how many kids are there in
Ethiopia that have no home, no one to love them, no one to give them
food, education, health care, tuck them in at night, and dab their
noses when they're sick, but legitimate gay parents get a 'no'?' It's
disgusting. Heidi understood the circumstances, so I don't think she
ever thought, This is about me, or, You're not proud of me. I think
she really knew what was at stake,” Michaels
said.
“Do you feel a lot of pressure to be
a role model for the gay community?” she was asked.
“Ironically, I've often been attacked
by the very same community that I am apparently representing. Any
minority is going to have issues with a person who seemingly
represents them because you don't necessarily represent them the way
they want to be represented. I realize the gay community wants me to
say and do certain things, but I am who I am. I'm not here to make a
political statement, I'm just here to live my life and be myself,”
Michaels answered.