Sally had the ride of her life. The first woman in space went where no woman had gone before.
Sally Ride died this week of pancreatic cancer. Too young.
What a trailblazer – a woman growing up in the 50s and 60s to become a scientist, space traveler and, as the world has just learned, a lesbian.
So now pundits are coming out of the woodwork taking potshots over whether Sally should have come out sooner to show the world “it’s OK to be gay.” Kinda like Anderson Cooper did.
For me, it was Sally’s choice. No one else was in Sally Ride’s skin as she grew up and made a career and life choices. If she wanted to keep her relationship on the down low for professional or personal reasons, who has the right to dispute her decision? No one.
And when Anderson came out because he felt it was the right thing to do, slam dunk for Anderson. He, too, did what he needed to do at the time that was right for him.
Every one of us has issues and each of us has to deal with them in the way that works best for us.
To me, Sally Ride was a brave astronaut who must have plowed through some heavy duty politics to become a national hero. And she died as bravely as she lived, with the understanding that her private life would finally be in the spotlight. It was Sally’s last call.