Singer-songwriters Denise Ho (何韻詩) and Tat Ming Pair (達明一派) member Anthony Wong (黃耀明) recently appeared on Maria Chung’s (鍾慧冰) i-Cable show, POV Today <今日觀點>, to talk about their experiences of growing up gay and their thoughts on officially coming out to the Hong Kong public for the first time last year. Both Denise and Anthony admitted that they were aware of their sexuality since they were young teenagers. Anthony said, “I was beginning to figure it out when I entered junior secondary school. I felt guilty.… I tried dating female classmates, but that just made me realize that I was really gay. The hardest part was figuring out how to tell my mother.” Maria expressed that as a mother herself, she can understand how Anthony’s mother must have felt when he confessed to her. “I’m honestly not sure if I could accept that myself,” said Maria. Denise nodded in agreement. “When I came out, I was worried about how my fans and parents would react, so I issued a public statement to them. Thankfully, my parents are rather liberal. They never gave me pressure. I actually never really told them. My mom and dad were actually one of the last ones to find out. They didn’t know until I came out publicly.” The 36-year-old said that she believed her mother already had some idea of her sexuality when she was in high school. “When I was fifteen years old and studying in Canada, I was already noticing that I liked the same sex. I didn’t know what to do. I heard about an institution that could provide me some details of [homosexuality], so I filled out the form. I was stupid enough to write in my home address, so my mother knew.” On how she found out that she was a lesbian, Denise said, “When you can’t stop thinking about that certain someone, then you will know.” Nonetheless, Denise expressed that she hopes to experience pregnancy and giving birth. She joked that she should borrow some sperm from “healthy swimmer” Anthony Wong! Denise said, “I like women. It’s not like I want to become a man. In the past I never understood marriage, but in the past five years, I’ve seen many friends getting married and having kids. It makes me want to experience that too. I want to get pregnant.” Denise and Anthony expressed their wish for a more accepting and open-minded society in the future. “In the ideal world, no one should have the need to come out.” Creds: QQ
