Good Morning America anchor Robin Roberts came out via Facebook in a message that thanks her longtime girlfriend, Amber Laign. Roberts, who has publicly faced breast cancer, been diagnosed with myelodysplastic syndrome, and undergone a bone marrow transplant is the second GMA member to come out, as weatherman Sam Champion came out last year. Roberts joins an already prolific list of women of color to come out this year.
Robin Roberts won the Arthur Ashe Courage Award at the 2013 ESPYs via NY Daily News
Flashback 12/29/12….Hard to believe this was 1 year ago today..when I reached a critical milestone of 100 days post transplant…and KJ was finally allowed to come back home.
Reading this comforts me and I hope the same for you: “If you are depressed, you are living in the past. If you are anxious, you are living in the future. If you are at peace, you are living in the present.”
At this moment I am at peace and filled with joy and gratitude.
I am grateful to God, my doctors and nurses for my restored good health.
I am grateful for my sister, Sally-Ann, for being my donor and giving me the gift of life.
I am grateful for my entire family, my long time girlfriend, Amber, and friends as we prepare to celebrate a glorious new year together.
I am grateful for the many prayers and well wishes for my recovery. I return every one of them to you 100 fold.On this last Sunday of 2013 I encourage you to reflect on what you are grateful for too.
Wishing you a Healthy and Happy New Year.
Peace, love, and blessings to all..XO
Roberts rose to fame in the 90s when she joined ESPN as a sportscaster. Her coming out is the perfect reason to bring her catchphrase, “go on with your bad self” back to the mainstream. (I’ll lead this charge, no worries.) You might also remember Roberts from the interview where Obama officially endorsed same sex marriage. At the time, many wondered whether her glass closet status is what secured her the interview, but what people really should have been worried about is whether it snagged her a role on Hannah Montana. In case you don’t remember, Roberts guest starred in an episode called, “Can You See the Real Me” in which Miley Cyrus reveals she’s Hannah Montana and talks about how hard it is to live a double life. For some reason no one credits her open closet door for this opportunity but me.
via Robin Roberts Facebook
Roberts and Laign, a massage therapist, have been together for ten years. Though 53 year-old Roberts has been out to family and friends, this marks her first public acknowledgment of the relationship and like Maria Bello, did not label herself lesbian, bisexual, or otherwise in the post.
Love! No other word. When you love yourself completely hiding doesn’t exist. Round of Applause goes out to Robin Roberts, she has no idea how many black women she has opened a door for.
A lot of great people publicly came out this year, but this one is especially important to me, because my mom watches GMA almost daily, loves Robin Roberts, and hopefully this will get her one step closer to understanding queerness.
I love this!!
I often wonder if I’ll ever stop getting that little jolt of pride and affection I feel when a lady publicly declares that she’s attracted to at least one other lady in the world. I don’t think that will happen any time soon.
(Which is to say, YAY, ROBIN ROBERTS!!!)
Same here.
I totally didn’t realize I’ve been watching Robin since I was 12 (and I’m 23 now) and always admiring her as a reporter/anchor. She’s funny as heck and now that I’m doing broadcasty things, too, this is awesome to hear.
Especially when this business so far has been very masculine, very white, and very heterosexual–at least in my market.
Whenever I see women who have made it to national, it’s always something. This is awesome.
great!
Didn’t see that one coming. But go on with your bad self!
Go on with your bad self, Robin! I was trying to explain to my straight friend all the exciting & heartwarming feelings I get whenever a queer person comes out, but I’m pretty sure I just ended up fangirling all over the place about my fav queermos. Thankfully Autostraddle is filled with people who just get it :)
Damn, that Miley Cyrus episode was prescient. Deep pop culture knowledge there.
Yay! I’m so happy for her.
Yes!!
Who doesn’t want to marry a massage therapist? It’s like a dream come true!
I always get so excited when queer women, especially qwoc, come out! Especially after this rather tumultuous year, Robin Roberts deserves all the happiness. Go go go on with your bad self
Yay!! :)
welcome to the club! wow to the “long time girlfriend” but uhm, well, did she say she was gay? no i ain’t saying she’s straight but there was no clear identification of her gender. robin might prefer other labels for all we know. totally not that important, just a random thought.
When the news of Robin’s coming out became public, my Mother sent me an e-mail message because she was so excited. Robin is one of the best parts of the show! Very proud to add her to the list of gay celebrities!
This made me happier than almost any other celebrity coming out because it was so unexpected to me. I mean, my gaydar usually sucks but usually I have some idea beforehand. And she was just this normal person who I saw on things and she just casually happens to be gay. That’s what I want from my life. Also, she’s amazing. And her dad was a Tuskegee airman. How cool is that? She’s just so great. This is great.
Love her! Love this! Love Everything.
“Though 53 year-old Roberts has been out to family and friends, this marks her first public acknowledgment of the relationship and like Maria Bello, did not label herself lesbian, bisexual, or otherwise in the post”
Yet Autostraddle still decided to label her as “gay”? Poor form.