Episode 220: Jessi Hempel

At the age of nineteen, journalist and author Jessi Hempel came out. Tale as old as time, right? But far less traveled territory is what proceeded to happen over the next several years: four out of five members of Jessi's immediate family - including her father - *ALSO* came out! Two decades later, in the midst of lockdown-induced isolation, Jessi, her parents, and her two younger siblings somewhat unexpectedly began turning to each other for support, despite their tumultuous family history. Equally unexpectedly, Jessi found herself wanting to revisit the deeply-vulnerable five-year period during which every single one of them (including Jessi's mother, in a different way) came out of the closets they had been trapped in. The end result is the newly-released, Glennon Doyle-endorsed memoir "The Family Outing," and we were absolutely thrilled to get to talk to Jessi all about it! Plus, we get into identity politics, and the *particular* way we all judge our parents' relationships...

Look for "The Family Outing" wherever books are sold! You can also connect with Jessi on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessihempel/, and check out her award-winning podcast, Hello Monday with Jessi Hempel.