When University of Missouri football player Michael Sam came out as gay, a magical thing happened.

Nearly everyone important in his life, from Mizzou fans to his fellow players to President Obama—yes, the president—showed their support. It seems the majority of people in the United States are finally coming to their senses and accepting people who are gay.

This all came despite speculation that his draft position would suffer or his sexual orientation would affect his overall NFL career.

And when Westboro Baptist Church tried to protest at a basketball game where Sam and the football team appeared to accept their trophy for winning the Cotton Bowl, people gathered to form a human wall to shield them from taunts.

Actress Ellen Page also came out as gay on Friday during a speech she gave at the Human Rights Campaign’s Time to Thrive Conference.

She received a standing ovation after saying that she was “tired of hiding.”

Of course she was tired. Pretending to be someone you’re not is an arduous, exhausting task that strips a person of his or her identity.

We think it’s great that these public figures have been met with such acceptance, and we’d like to commend them for their bravery in coming out in a society where being gay can still be considered taboo.

Hopefully, these two people coming out will inspire other people to do so as well.

We need more role models like Michael Sam and Ellen Page.

We hope that one day, anyone can be themselves without any fear and no one will react negatively when a person says the two words: “I’m gay.”