Was Christopher Columbus Gay?

Was Christopher Columbus gay?   

An article in CultureMap Houston dated October 11, 2010 pointed to the unusual coincidence between National Coming Out Day in Canada and Columbus Day falling on the same date that year.

Columbus Day falls on the second Monday of October each year.   

National Coming Out Day is celebrated in many countries including Switzerland, Germany, Canada, Croatia, Poland and the United Kingdom.  Monday is also Columbus Day. Coincidence?

Historians have contacted CultureMap with a shocking new theory: Christopher Columbus was gay.  “I know some gay men might not want his name on their team’s roster — he massacred the natives, got a bit money-hungry and was terrible with directions. However, the evidence is overwhelming. Since the Italian-born explorer is no longer with us, I will take the time to come out for Christopher Columbus.”

Still unconvinced? Consider the following:

1. His name was Christopher Columbus.

Not Chris but Christopher. As author David Rakoff says, “Of course it’s not ‘Adam and Steve.’ It’s Adam and Stephen. No gay man in his right mind would go by ‘Steve.’ ”

2. He always wore that frilly little hat. Gay men are great at accessorizing.

3. He has a statue in SoMo (South Montrose). Everyone knows that’s gay-town.

4. He hung out with Queen Isabella — a lot. Queens love queens.

5. His marriage was pure politics. He married Filipa Moniz Perestrelo, the daughter of the Porto Santo governor and Portuguese nobleman of Genoese origin Bartolomeu Perestrelo. Some records report that Filipa died in 1485. Others speculate that Columbus may have simply left his first wife … because he was gay.

Sadly Columbus lived in a time when homosexuality was viewed as sexual deviance and unaccepted. Stand up for the explorer and come out for him.

To be fair we asked AI if Christopher Columbus was gay.  And we got this response: There is no historical evidence to suggest that Christopher Columbus was gay; historical records show he had relationships with women and fathered children with two of them.

But, but, but! What about that hat?