Finalist 2011 – Ryan Lourens
Name Ryan Lourens
City / Town Fourways
Province Gauteng
Age 29
Career Have my own Interior decorating business and am currently doing a BA in Interior Design. I also have a BA in Live Performance.
Previous Competitions None
Why do you want to be Mr. Gay South Africa™ 2011? I do believe that there is a great lack of gay role models in our society today. Many young gay men and women need someone to look up to. And not only does the gay community need more role models, but we also need a voice to change modern societies stance on homosexuality. I understand that this won’t happen overnight, but in my life I have changed many peoples outlook on homosexuality. Some of my greatest accomplishments as a gay man is hearing someone tell that they now see homosexuality in a different light. The root problem to young suicide, depression and doubting one’s self-worth, does not stem from being gay, but from the ideological society we live in. I know this is maybe an impossible task to change, but Rome was not built in a day, and even the slightest dent will have a great impact. I am and always have been a proud gay man, and if I can teach just one man the same, then I can honestly say I have achieved greatness.
Which public gay figure, South African or otherwise, do you see as a role model and why? Which public gay figure, South African or otherwise, do you see as a role model and why? I would love to say Ellen DeGeneres for obvious reasons, but my choice would have to be a 14 year old American boy from Michigan, who stood up in front of the whole school board and defended his teacher for disciplining a student who was making anti-gay remarks. There is something we can all learn from this boy. No matter if you are 14 or 84, we need to stand up for our rights, not as gay men and women, but as human beings!
Chosen charity to support Animal Welfare and Rehabilitation
Web site / Blog http://www.facebook.com/foxsuperstar
SMS Code SMS GSA 5 to 34008.Each SMS costs R2 – maximum of 100 SMS per Phone Number per day. E.g. SMS “GSA 5” to 34008.