AGAINST ME frontman Tom Gabel is set to drop a bombshell on his fans, as he reveals his decision to pursue life as a woman. All is set to be revealed in an upcoming issue of Rolling Stone magazine.
Good on Tom for pursuing the lifestyle of his choosing. Will be interesting to see how the rest of the world reacts to the news.
Below is the preview from Rolling Stone magazine, where the pic above was sourced..
"Against Me! singer Tom Gabel reveals plans to begin living as a woman in the new issue of Rolling Stone. Gabel, who has dealt privately with gender dysphoria for years, will soon begin the process of transition, by taking hormones and undergoing electrolysis treatments.
Gabel will eventually take the name Laura Jane Grace, and will remain married to her wife Heather. "For me, the most terrifying thing about this was how she would accept the news," says Gabel. "But she's been super-amazing and understanding."
Gabel only told a handful of family and friends about her plan to transition before talking to Rolling Stone. Because this is the first time a major rock star has come out as transgender, the singer made a point of speaking openly about it. "I'm going to have embarrassing moments," says Gabel, "and that won't be fun. But that's part of what talking to you is about – is hoping people will understand, and hoping they'll be fairly kind."
The full story of Gabel's transformation is in the latest issue, on newsstands this Friday (May 11th). In it, the singer tells Josh Eells about her history of gender dysphoria, the specifics of the transition process and what becoming Laura Jane Grace will mean for the future of Against Me!"
THE GASLIGHT ANTHEM's Brian Fallon has posted this rather well put piece about the news...
"So Tom’s gonna be Laura now… and in 2012 I still find people on the internet commenting on another persons life how they insult and condemn a person for his choices.
How about the people who go through this and never find peace and end up committing suicide? Would you rather that? Or maybe he could become a raging drug addict and ruin his life and family? Would you rather that? Or maybe we could have rules from a dictator where everyone gets killed for anything they believe against the government, oh wait that doesn’t work…
How about you leave the guy alone. How about you let another human being make a decision about their lives without your snide prejudices and bigotry? This is one of the hardest decisions a person can make. From my limited understanding of the subject, it means feeling your whole life like you were born in the wrong skin. That’s something that 99% of us can’t understand. Weither you agree or don’t, it’s not your life. It’s not your family. it’s not your band, it’s theirs.
I don’t see the AM! guys very often, or if at all, but I always wish them well. They’re a great band. Leave it at that. Just let them be a great band.
To those being kind, this is not for you…
If this is joke though, it’s in very bad taste to the people who actually go through this. But I will say that I still feel this way about anyone who makes a decision against what we call normal. You can’t hate them, and they have the right, here in America, to make their own choices and live their lives free of prejudice.
So go live, Tom."