--- description: The author of 'The Family Outing' on what happened when her whole family came out, and why the notion of coming out can apply to all sorts of personal journeys. title: Jessi Hempel on Why Coming Out Is For Everyone image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb6964fee53580bdc/698a35fe096a94a48c6ad030/jessi-hempel-the-family-outing.jpg?branch=production&width=1920&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Entertainment](/section/entertainment/) ## Entertainment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [identity](/tag/identity/) ## identity Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Jessi Hempel on Why Coming Out Is For Everyone  by [Anisha Kohli](/author/anisha-kohli/)  ## Anisha Kohli Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Oct 11, 2022 2:35 PM CUT  Jessi Hempel, pictured in 1981, was the first in her family to come out. Soon, her father, mother, sister, and brother all followed, each coming out in their own way. Jessi Hempel, pictured in 1981, was the first in her family to come out. Soon, her father, mother, sister, and brother all followed, each coming out in their own way.Courtesy of Jessi Hempel  by [Anisha Kohli](/author/anisha-kohli/)  ## Anisha Kohli Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Oct 11, 2022 2:35 PM CUT Ever thought about all the secrets your family keeps from one another? [Jessi Hempel divulges just what happened](https://time.com/6217552/coming-out-family-truth-jessi-hempel/ "undefined") when her family grappled with truths about queer identity, personal tragedy, and efforts to become their authentic selves in her debut memoir, _The Family Outing_, out this month. Over five years, each person in Hempel’s family came out in some way, in the process transforming their family dynamics and journeys of acceptance. In 2020, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Hempel began interviewing her mother, father, and her two siblings in an attempt to “stitch together” their stories. An experienced storyteller as a former magazine writer and host of the podcast “Hello Monday,” which chronicles the changing nature of work, Hempel gets personal about “coming out” and shares her unique viewpoint on the term. Hempel says that for people like her who identify as queer, the term “coming out” has “a very linear progression. To ‘come out’ is to announce your queer identity,” Hempel tells TIME. “I think about the closet as something much more universal.” Hempel emphasizes that she believes coming out is not necessarily a singular, huge event, even though it can feel that way, especially to a young person. Rather, it’s the constant growth and realization that defines the human experience, she says. “It is an invitation always to go deeper in your process of figuring out who you truly are,” Hempel says. “The process of coming out is the process of living into your authentic self,” she adds. Hempel says that she’s aware there are people who disagree with her about the “universality involved in coming out,” but she counters that the queer community should share the freedom of coming out with the rest of the world. “We’re always coming out in little ways, all of the time,” Hempel says. In this video, hear Hempel talk more about what coming out means to her. Also read [this excerpt](https://time.com/6217552/coming-out-family-truth-jessi-hempel/ "undefined") from _The Family Outing_ in TIME. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/6218200/jessi-hempel-coming-out-day/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/6218200/jessi-hempel-coming-out-day/"},"headline":"Jessi Hempel on Why Coming Out Is For Everyone","datePublished":"2022-10-11T14:35:27.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-24T14:49:48.477Z","description":"The author of 'The Family Outing' on what happened when her whole family came out, and why the notion of coming out can apply to all sorts of personal journeys","url":"https://time.com/6218200/jessi-hempel-coming-out-day/","keywords":["identity","LGBTQ","culturepod","sponsorshipblock topic","Celebrating LGBTQIA History"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb6964fee53580bdc/698a35fe096a94a48c6ad030/jessi-hempel-the-family-outing.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Anisha Kohli","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/anisha-kohli/"}],"articleSection":"Entertainment","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb6964fee53580bdc/698a35fe096a94a48c6ad030/jessi-hempel-the-family-outing.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"jessi-hempel-the-family-outing","caption":"Jessi Hempel, pictured in 1981, was the first in her family to come out. 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