• ELIXHER
• On October 31, 2013

Scandal star Kerry Washington has been making headlines lately with pregnancy rumors and her upcoming appearance on Saturday Night Live. LGBT publication Advocate chatted with the actress and alleged mom-to-be about lesbian rumors, her commitment to LGBT equality and more. Here’s some of what she had to say:

On lesbian rumors…

“She Hate Me”

Although you recently married a man, some gossips have assumed you must be a lesbian because you’re so notoriously private about your love life. Do you mind?
It’s interesting how much people long to fill in the gaps when someone in the public eye doesn’t share their personal life. I understand their frustration. I like how people will post pictures of me with other women that I adore, hugging on red carpets, and say, “See?” Are we so uncomfortable with love between two people of the same gender that we immediately label it as sexual? But I’ve never been bothered by the lesbian rumor. There’s nothing offensive about it, so there’s no reason to be offended.

On homophobia…

Homophobia within the black community gets a lot of attention. Have you witnessed it firsthand?
I have. In fact, something that brings me great joy is knowing what Scandal’s audience looks like in terms of African-American households and knowing that so many African-American people and families are being introduced to our characters James and Cyrus. It’s really exciting that millions of viewers each week are living life with this amazing, complex couple, stepping into their gay marriage and adoption experience, which is such a vital storyline in our show.

On past roles as LGBT characters…

You’ve spoken about how director Spike Lee sent you and some of your costars to a “lesbian boot camp” to help prepare you for She Hate Me. Did you learn any valuable lesbian lessons?
Well, I definitely had a leg up — no pun intended — over most of the other women in the movie. Because of my experience with NiteStar, [a theater education program in New York City], I went into it with a lot more information. The best part for me was when we would just go hang out together in lesbian clubs. I always approach a role like an anthropologist, so I like to lose myself in a culture and an identity. It was amazing to spend time in that world.

“Life is Hot in Cracktown”

You played the prostitute lover of Brittany Murphy’s prostitute character in The Dead Girl. Did you see them as lesbians, or was that just a codependent relationship rooted in loneliness and desperation?
Brittany and I talked about that. We felt that neither one of them were politicized enough to identify as lesbians, but they did have a deep commitment and love for each other. It was a lesbian relationship, but they probably would’ve identified as bisexual.

You also played Marybeth, a heroin-addicted transgender prostitute, in Life is Hot in Cracktown. Did you receive positive feedback from the trans community?
Yeah, I did. I had an amazing coach on that film, a phenomenal trans woman named Valerie Spencer. I spent a lot of time with her at home, at work, just hanging out. We also had a lot of trans women in the film, so we really wanted the community to feel present both on set and on screen.

Read the full interview over at Advocate.com.