Royals

Prince William reveals how he’d react if children were gay

Jun 27, 2019

Prince William said he would "fully support" whatever choices his children made. Source: Getty

While everyone from politicians to celebrities has an opinion on the LGBT community, the Duke of Cambridge has revealed how he would react if his children were to come out as gay.

Prince William – who is the father of Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis – said he would support his children with whatever decision they made.

The 37-year-old made the comments ahead of the annual Pride in London parade and visited the Albert Kennedy Trust (akt) – an organisation that aims to provide members of the LGBT community with accepting, supportive and caring homes. It was the first ever visit to a LGBT youth charity by a member of the royal family.

Prince William officially opened the charity’s new services centre in Hoxton – which will host drop-in sessions for young people. During the visit, a young man quizzed the father-of-three on what he would think if one of his children was LGBT. Prince William admitted that he’d only started thinking about the topic since he became a father.

“It is something I’m nervous about,” he admitted. “Not because I’m worried about them being gay or anything, it’s more about the fact I’m worried about the pressures they’re going to face and how much harder their life could be.”

“For my family, particularly in the position we are in, that’s the bit I’m nervous about,” he continued. “I fully support whatever decision they make, but it does worry me from a parent point of view how many barriers, hateful words, persecution, scrutiny, discrimination that might come, that’s the bit that really troubles me a little bit.”

Despite his concerns, Prince William said it was “up to all of us” to help correct the problems members of the LGBT community face.

During his visit, the Duke of Cambridge learned more about youth homelessness in the LGBT community and how akt is working to prevent the issue. He met staff and people who have been supported by the charity’s various programs and services.

One of the people he met was Faz – a young man who lost his parents when he was younger and was living with extended family. When he came out as transgender, his family reacted badly and he relied on the support of Faz to get back on his feet.

Prince William’s visit also marked the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall uprising – which occurred in New York City and is credited as the moment that sparked the modern LGBT movement around the globe.

The Duke officially opened @aktcharity's new services centre in Hoxton, which will host drop-in sessions for young people and grow its youth engagement offering.

Visit akt's website to find out more about their work 👉 https://t.co/EgjpnOJKOX pic.twitter.com/9Kd9Zsb2aQ

— The Prince and Princess of Wales (@KensingtonRoyal) June 26, 2019

“akt is honoured to be welcoming His Royal Highness The Duke Of Cambridge to our new London service centre today, which is the first visit by a member of the Royal Family to a LGBTQ+ youth charity,” Tim Sigsworth, Chief Executive at akt said in a statement. “We are delighted that he has agreed to officially open our new YouthSpace which will greatly help our mission to prevent LGBTQ+ youth homelessness.”

It’s not the first time Prince William has shown his support for the LGBT community. In 2016 he became the first member of the royal family member to appear on the cover of a gay magazine. He appeared on the cover of Attitude and explained that no one should be bullied for their sexuality.