Unlocking The Closet: Coming Out Later In Life

WBEZ’s Tony Sarabia talks with people who came out later in life about how that affected their closest relationships.

Unlocking the Closet thumb
Jason Marck / WBEZ
Unlocking the Closet thumb
Jason Marck / WBEZ

Unlocking The Closet: Coming Out Later In Life

WBEZ’s Tony Sarabia talks with people who came out later in life about how that affected their closest relationships.

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Over the years Curious City has received a lot of questions about LGBTQ life in Chicago. We’ve done stories about the history of Boystown, the dating scene (gay and straight), and whether Chicago activist and social worker Jane Addams should be considered a lesbian by today’s standards. Today we bring you a story about another dimension of gay and lesbian life — coming out of the closet later in life.

This story was produced by WBEZ’s Tony Sarabia in 2000. Sarabia is the longtime host of The Morning Shift. He’s retiring from WBEZ, and we thought now would be a good time to share his documentary. It tells the story of several people who came out as gay or lesbian late in life, and how that affected their closest relationships.

Tony Sarabia is the former host of The Morning Shift, WBEZ’s live talk show weekdays from 9-10 a.m.