In the March issue of Diva, Clementine Ford officially came out.
She told the magazine: “I never want to put a label on myself – but knowing that not everyone comes from such a liberal place, when something like Prop 8 comes out, you realize it’s important to stand up and be counted. A little gay kid in a small town is more important than whether I want a label.”
Since joining the cast of The L Word, Ford has had plenty of opportunities to meet those small town gay kids.
Last summer, while she was shooting a public service announcement for the Point Foundation (an organization that grants scholarships to LGBT students), Ford asked Curve reporter JD Disalvatore why the charming, intelligent Point Scholars she’d met that day had been kicked out of their homes.
The answer: “Some people don’t like their kids being gay.”
She sent a letter to the Point Foundation after the shoot, offering to help any way she could – even if that meant licking envelopes.
When Diva first asked her about her sexuality, Ford said she wasn’t technically out yet, explaining, “For me, there’s never been a distinction about anything to do with sexuality, so there was no declaration to be made. My siblings and I would bring home men and women, and as long as they were human it wasn’t a big thing.”
Later in the interview, of course, she went ahead and punctuated the declaration with a label – “out.”
Ford was married to Chad Todhunter between 2000 and 2004, but rumors about her sexual orientation have been swirling since then, with many people speculating that she was in a relationship with L Word co-star Kate Moennig. About that, Ford told Diva:
Clearly we did our jobs right if there are rumours. But I hate to squash them, too. Whatever I say people are going to have their own ideas. Basically we’re really good friends now and people can draw whatever conclusions they want.
As for whether she’s dating anyone now, Ford said, “Yes, I am, but it’s new and I wouldn’t call it a relationship. I don’t want to say too much and jinx it.”
By the end of the interview, Ford was playing every lesbian’s favorite game: Project the Gayness.
“Mum and Jane (Lynch) have such a great energy together, on screen and off,” Ford said. “They’re still friends. I want them to be together so badly; it’s my secret dream.”
So maybe this isn’t that far off?
Whoops, now I’m doing the projecting.
The March issue of Diva hits shelves in the UK on Feb. 12. You can also watch Clementine on This Just Out with Liz Feldman
UPDATE: The label Clementine used in the magazine to describe herself is “out” and the article implies the person she’s currently dating is a woman. So it’s not clear whether she identifies as bisexual or gay, but either way, it’s good for queer visibility!
