Afterwards Munir explained the decision to come out to the leader of the US on live television: "It was something the president said about acting crazy, about how if you need to get a social issue across sometimes you just need to act a little crazy. At that moment I literally felt my pulse intensify and I thought, 'I've been sitting on this issue for such a long time.'



"I haven't come out to my parents – sorry, Mum and Dad – and I just thought if anyone in the world is going to accept me for who I am then it's the president of the United States. If anyone in the world has the power to change the situation for people like myself it is Barack Obama."

The student told BuzzFeed News they expected their parents would be surprised by the news but they didn't want to put a burden on them: "I feel bad because I'm so close to them but unfortunately we live in a society where people who want to make the worst out of you always will, and unfortunately people in my community would never have responded well to this news. I felt that if I told my parents it would almost be a burden on them because they would feel as thought they would have to keep me a secret.

"I think they'll be upset in the sense that I didn't tell them. The emotions that go through your entire mind when you know your existence isn't even recognised by the UK government under the Equality Act is a turmoil that I wouldn't wish on anyone."

