I'm in a little bit of a different situation, because working in the business that I do and living in the city that I live in, I haven't had a problem with people who are gay. Since I was 10 I've been working alongside them, and some of my best friends are gay.
I had a national and international reputation. I had written the history and articles. So I brought to the Trotskyist movement some international reputation.
Usually bad guys are much more fun to play and much more interesting to watch.