This post was submitted by Eric Jost

As summer draws to a close and the last of the Pride events are celebrated across the country, I took the weekend to celebrate a different kind of pride: Geek Pride.

On the eve of San Diego’s annual Comic Con, Washington, D.C., held its own unofficial celebration of all things geek, beginning with “Star Wars in Concert” at the Verizon Center. There were also ongoing performances of “One Man Lord of the Rings” and a special “One Man Star Wars Trilogy” at Wooly Mammoth Theatre.

When I first learned about D.C.’s unofficial weekend of nerd pride I kept my enthusiasm to a minimum, not even mentioning it to my boyfriend (who despises all things sci-fi and fantasy). Placing a quick call to my friend Thom, we purchased our tickets and celebrated amongst ourselves, discussing the appropriateness of bringing light-sabers to the Verizon Center.

As the weekend approached and I finished rewatching the Star Wars saga in preparation, a funny thing began to happen: my fellow gays began revealing their identical weekend plans via Facebook. These were people I had partied until dawn with but never once had Chewbacca, Voldemort, or cylons come up in conversation. It was like learning that Batman really is Bruce Wayne, discovering this untapped collection of nerdom that existed right under my very nose for years. At once I felt both comforted and embarrassed.

Although my sexual and gender identities are never things I hide or shy away from, I have always had difficulty outing myself as a fanboy. My very good friends know about my obsession with The X-Files, but I’ve known people for years before hinting at the wealth of Star Wars and Harry Potter trivia that swirls inside my skull. When beginning a new relationship, I try to wait until the third or fourth date before revealing my alter ego. Unfortunately, bringing people back to my apartment discloses a bit more than I would perhaps like a one-night stand to know. While there aren’t posters or meticulously drawn fan art hanging around my studio, a quick glance through my bookshelf reveals “The Philosophy of The X-Files” and the complete Harry Potter collection. Similar revelations are hidden among my DVD collection.

While I know it is stereotypical and many would be quick to correct me, I grew up thinking that you couldn’t be both gay and a geek. There were so few positive gay role models on TV in the 90s and early-00s, and those that did pop up were typically chiseled and stylish – something my chubby 16-year-old self could not relate to. Likewise, the X-Files, Star Wars, and Lord of the Rings universes were devoid of openly LGBTQ characters. So when I began coming out, my newfound gay friendships evolved around issues other than spaceships and vampire slayers. In fact, the realm of science fiction has been my primary bonding tool with heterosexual men, whom seemed far more willing to attend midnight screenings of The Dark Knight than I ever thought my queer friends would be.

As Thom and I walked through the Verizon Center taking pictures with costumes and props from the film series, my gaydar was going off more frequently than Greedo’s blaster. I suppose the queer following shouldn’t surprise me as many sci-fi and fantasy stories can be interpreted as queer metaphors — a young person feels isolated and alone until he unlocks a secret about himself and discovers a new world of possibilities. And while not everyone will appreciate the four-hour extended editions of Peter Jackson’s epic, it’s nice to know that my identities don’t have to be in conflict with one-another.

I finally feel balance in the force.

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