#ThursdayTrends – it’s all about transparency – #TBT

My mom recently sent me the pic above. I’m the chubby one, second from the left in the tube socks. This photo got me thinking about how fashion cycles work. What was popular in 1973 is exactly what’s happening in fashion today. Look at the tube socks – hipsters in Williamsburg are doing this look already this summer. Then, there’s the kid on the other side of the camp counselor in the mesh tank top. That’s a look we’re already seeing a bit of on the streets. But, it will be everywhere next summer, as mesh and transparent tops were all over the spring 2015 menswear runways last month.

That brings me to the transparency trend. It’s much bigger than just fashion. We live in a world where we document our every move via social media. But, there was a time, not so long ago, that our intimate feelings and thoughts were not as transparent – or were they? If you study the photo above you can decipher an awful lot about me. There’s the chubby kid that would spiral into an eating disorder, exercise addiction and now runs marathons. Then, there’s that camp counselor! I was completely in love with him. Don’t let the tea baggers tell you that sexuality is a choice. As Alexander McQueen said, ” I went straight from the birth canal onto the gay parade.” That was the case for me too – and it’s so evident in this photo. What’s a good gay catholic boy to do when he’s surrounded by objects of beauty like this? Lean in and pray! Fortunately for today’s youth, there are people they can talk to about “those” feelings.

If you think your world is private, think again. We’ve only just begun to transform ourselves culturally and what was once considered private will become public. It’s all about transparency. The pic says it all!

You can read the whole story about my experience at Camp Tekawitha in my book Stonewall to Obama. Get your copy here.