Nine Reasons Why Ricky Martin Can’t Come Out Of The Closet

Ricky Martin: Probably gay. Probably really, totally, utterly, completely gay. So why not come out about it? Looking back at his career and the image he’s created for himself, there are some valid reasons for why the performer and philanthropist might continue keeping his sexual orientation shrouded.

1. His charity work

2. Ricky might be afraid of being seen as perverted or deviant by homophobic fans

Because we live in a society still attempting to make sense of recent scandals with the Boy Scouts and the Catholic Church, to name just two, and riddled with deep-set homophobia, there is a sense of unease surrounding the juxtaposition of gay men and children. For these reasons, Ricky might not want his alleged homosexuality out in the open.

I love giving the golden shower.

I’ve done it before in the shower. It’s like so sexy, you know, the temperature of your body and the shower water is very different.

The subsequent outcry from fans who thought his statement was everything from amusingly silly to gross to outright morally repugnant led Ricky to address his comments publicly, telling fans through his website:

(I never thought it) would lead us to an absurd political discussion that has become sensationalist.
I demand respect for my foundation and our work.

So, again, it circles back to the focus he’s been placing on his charitable work and with how he markets his foundation to the public.

3. His female fans

As mentioned earlier, much of Ricky’s carefully cultivated image as an entertainer hinges on whether people buy him as a ladies’ man and the consummate “Latin Lover.” His ardent female fan-base might lose interest - and feel betrayed - if he were to come out.

4. Machismo

Because Latino culture can so often be tainted by machismo, Ricky’s decision to come out risks the possibility that he might not be embraced by his Latin American fans and that further attacks might be made on his masculinity. (See: Perez Hilton’s coverage of Ricky, which more often than not includes referring to the star as “Enriquetta.”)

5. The speculation keeps him in the news

As one of our commenters pointed out, the greatest bumps in Ricky Martin headlines of late all center around the speculation into his sexual orientation. Is he just trying to keep the spotlight on himself?

6. He wants to keep his private life private

Maybe he truly believes that who he loves and finds attractive should be none of our business.

7. With coming out comes the expectation that one must be the poster person for gay people and the gay rights movement.

With coming out comes certain expectations from specific communities. Ricky might not be ready or willing to deal with that pressure or to navigate how he, as a gay man in the media glare, wishes to be perceived.

8. He might not want to link homosexuality to abuse.

This one is a stretch given Ricky has denied the rumors that he suffered sexual abuse during his Menudo days at the hands of record executive Jose Menendez - the very same Jose Menendez who was murdered by sons Eric and Lyle in part because, according to the brothers, he had sexually abused them throughout most of their lives.

9. No one wants to prove Perez Hilton right.

For his part, Ricky has gone from side-stepping the subject of his much-debated sexual orientation to outright denying that he is homosexual. At the height of the Latin explosion in American media, a pop culture movement for which Ricky became the poster boy, he told Plus 7 Days magazine that he was not gay:

“I am a modern man, live a full life, do not feel any barriers inside myself,” Ricky says. “I perceive the contemporary world as an open forum, where nothing is taboo except criminal activity. If I were gay, why not admit it? … I am a normal man. I love women and sex. I am a real hot-blooded Puerto Rican, but I have never been attracted by sex with a man.”

Ricky’s answer was particularly interesting in how it both sought to normalize homosexuality (”If I were gay, why not admit it?”) and paint it as a freak occurrence (”I am a normal man. I love women and sex.”) Additionally, it is telling that Ricky should equate Latino masculinity with flaming heterosexuality, so to speak. What, he seems to ask, could be more Latino than a man in tight leather pants and perfectly manicured eyebrows professing his love to a Barbie doll-like caricature of womanhood? For a time, he dated Mexican model and TV presenter Rebecca de Alba, although many of his fans have openly speculated that one or both parties used the relationship as a cover-up for their homosexuality.

Despite Ricky’s relationship with Rebecca and his protests to the contrary, or perhaps somehow fueled by them, the rumors and speculation continued. In December of 2007, Ricky’s alleged skin care specialist Ole Henriksen spoke to Salonk, a gay Swedish magazine, about his famous client’s sexuality:

“He (Martin) is a bit more open about it (his homosexuality) these days than he used to be… I don’t know if he has a boyfriend.”

Last year, the rumors reached a fever pitch as Ricky introduced his twin sons - Matteo and Valentino - to the world in an Hola magazine photo spread. Ricky’s children were born via surrogate, causing many to speculate that the pop star, who had always been involved in children’s charities, wanted to start a family without a wife or girlfriend. In the interview accompanying the photos, Ricky mentioned that he was raising the boys with the help of a personal assistant whom he declined to name. The obvious implication, thought many, was that Ricky had a male partner whose identity - and existence - he wanted to keep private.

It is now generally understood that Ricky Martin is a gay man raising two sons more or less away from the glare of the media. The singer recently placed his Miami home on the market, choosing to remain in his more private, secluded home base in Puerto Rico. It is here, on his home island, that Ricky is thought to live with his partner. In this sense, it’s no different from a female singer pretending to be sexually available to her male fans even if she’s in a monogamous relationship. It’s about a palatable (and marketable) fantasy, not reality.

Ricky can Live La Vida Loca all he wants but in choosing to remain silent he is, in effect, silencing so many others who could could benefit from his courage at a time when coming out is still considered an act of bravery. In order to make it so that one’s sexual orientation is “not a big deal,” enough people have to take active steps to normalize it.