Magic Johnson's Son E.J. on Being Publicly Outed

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Magic Johnson's gay son E.J. was recently thrust into the public eye when he was photographed in Hollywood walking hand-in-hand with another man and now he's opening up for the first time about his "outing."

In an interview with famed publicist Howard Bragman on his web show Gwissues, 20-year-old E.J. reveals that while he came out to his family and friends about five years ago, he had not had the right opportunity to go public with his sexuality until the recent photos were published.

"I always wanted to come into the spotlight," he said. "I had always had dreams and plans of doing my own thing and creating my own image, so it came a little sooner than I thought it would. But this is still something I knew I would be going through and would have to experience."

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The son of basketball legend Magic Johnson told Bragman that he felt "very blessed" to have such a supportive family that has helped him throughout the coming out process. "After I got all the love and support from my family, then I knew that I could go out and conquer the world," E.J. said.

Overall, E.J. said the reaction after he went public has been supportive, but he also experienced some negative reaction online. "It's almost like they're attacking me for being me. So to that I can only say, 'Well, I can only be myself, so I don't know really what you want me to do."

Currently studying event management and design at NYU, E.J. said he wants to maintain a public presence and "be another voice for the generation," as well as a role model for gay youth. "In the future, I really hope to get involved with media and become my own personality -- and I would love to have a talk show someday."

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