What do you think about a 7 yr old saying he is gay?

I saw this this morning. I don't know how I feel about this. I think sexuality is a bit more complex than what a 7 yr old can grasp.

I didn't even know what homosexuality was until I was 10, so I'd be skeptic about it, even when teenagers say they are it doesn't always mean that they are.

Kids say a lot of things. lol

I remember when gay meant the person was happy. Maybe that is what the 7 year old thinks.

Uh, this is a catch 22 for me.

Although I do think that that you know at a very early age whether you're attracted or not to the same sex, I wouldn't say a 7 yr old can fully grasp his/her sexuality and just declare whether or not they're "gay."

I have heard too often adults saying they knew from a young age they were gay because while their counterparts had crushes on the opposite sex, they are crushing on the same sex. So, I am sure some 7 year-olds do know. But, like NY said, at that age, most of them are probably too young to fully understand their sexuality.

I can't tell from personal experience. I was curious about sex at that age, but it was exploratory and I explored with other kids, both male and female.

I don't really think sexuality is set pre-pubescent; that it is mutable as you grow and you'd probably be over 11 when you found to which gender you were most attracted.

I had an experience something like this when my nephew was around 9. He is in his 40's now so this was a long time ago.

Anyhoo, we were watching an old Marx brothers movie on TV. One of the women actors made a comment that she wanted "to be free, young, happy and gay!"

My nephew turned to me and said "Why does she want to be gay?"

I could tell he was truly puzzled. I wasn't sure how to answer or what he knew about the word "gay" so I asked him. He told me he knew it meant a man wanting to marry another man. He had never heard the word as it was used in the context of the movie which was made in the 30's.

I explained to him that originally the word "gay" meant happy or joyful back when the movie was made so it had a different meaning than the one he knew. How he knew about the more current definition I have no idea. He accepted my explanation saying it was an "old time word." I agreed. That was that.

So I would ask this 7 seven year old in the news story what his definition of the word means. That would give the parents something to talk about with him.

Watch this documentary film, then get back to me

It documents a series of amateur videos that chronicle the experiences of a kid and his circle of friends from 8 years old to the teenage years. The main kid grows up to be a gay 30 year old, but he is obviously gay at 12 and is also clearly gay even at 8 years old. He acknowledges this in the film (as do his parents). His younger brother who is also prominently featured in the videos along with the rest of his friends grows up to be completely straight. Go figure!

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0368186/
http://www.amazon.com/Put-Camera-Me-Justin-Satinover/dp/B00094ARXW
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iS3oR7ppULc

From what I heard gay people become aware of personal attraction earlier than straight people do. At 6 years old straight boys and girls like to "rep" their gender and see the other as the competitor or a nuisance. Gay boys and girls know (again from what I heard) something about them is different.

Although, I had girlfriends, I've always liked boys better from an extremely early age. He's obviously a very precocious kid. If he knows he's gay, so be it.

tmontyb wrote:Although, I had girlfriends, I've always liked boys better from an extremely early age. He's obviously a very precocious kid. If he knows he's gay, so be it.

Agree

It is a bit odd but not completely out of the question.

Like a lot of things kids say, it can be something that they say for any random reason during the moment and may not be actualized; however, I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss a child who claims to be self aware about this subject at such a young age.

Chris wrote:Like a lot of things kids say, it can be something that they say for any random reason during the moment and may not be actualized; however, I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss a child who claims to be self aware about this subject at such a young age.

Yeah, that's why I say talk to the kid. Ask him about how he feels. That way the parent can tell just what he means and how he really feels.

kids like to be accepted ad part of things too. So perhaps if he lives in a community where homosexuality is widely accepted and publicized then perhaps he wants to be "in the scene". So I agree with minerva--- must talk to the child

I do know that I had crushes on movie/tv stars at 7yrs old... so why couldnt he be having crushes on men?

wants2laugh wrote:I do know that I had crushes on movie/tv stars at 7yrs old... so why couldnt he be having crushes on men?

I had a crush on Robert Cummings when I was a kid and some fantasies about a male 4th grade teacher, Mr. Bonanos. I also played with a friends penis at about 10.

OMG - ya think I coulda been a queer child?