In the words of another blogger at Pams House, Katherine Patrick has kicked open the closet door, and quite rightly.

The youngest daughter of Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick, she has made her sexual orientation public in an interview with her father in Bay Windows, a weekly Boston newspaper aimed at the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered community.

Eflux Media has this.

The 18-year-old who attended St. Andrew’s School in Delaware and is planning to attend Smith College in the fall told her parents that she was gay on July 3, 2007, nearly three weeks after the Legislature voted to kill a proposed anti-gay marriage amendment to the state constitution.

Patrick responded by saying he was proud of his daughter and also said they will take part in the march in Boston’s gay pride parade scheduled for Saturday.

I think it is great, the only way law makers can understand the issues is if they affect them personally, but the Governor had no idea before the lawmakers voted to kill a proposal to outlaw gay marriage.

Pams House had this to say.

What a shining example of quiet activism. Even though Ms. Patrick is not a high-profile figure with the stature of, say, Anderson Cooper,
she realizes the power of what coming out means to so many others out
there. We change hearts and minds of those around us by just living
openly.

And also posted this.

Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) today
applauded a groundbreaking interview, in Bay Windows newspaper, in
which Katherine Patrick, daughter of Massachusetts Governor Deval
Patrick, talks openly for the first time about being the lesbian
daughter of one of America’s most pro-lesbian, gay, bisexual and
transgender (LGBT) leaders.

…"All of us at PFLAG congratulate Governor and Mrs. Patrick as
they embrace their daughter and celebrate their family’s love," said
PFLAG national president John R. Cepek, who is the father of a gay son.
"The Patricks embody the perfect combination of leadership and love
and are role models not only for parents in Massachusetts, but for
families across the country.  Long before he knew he had a lesbian
daughter, Governor Patrick was a leader on LGBT issues.  He has set a
policy and parental example that every father, and every elected
leader, should aspire to follow."