The actress says "it can be hard" to be authentic in Hollywood

Ellen Page has come out as a lesbian.

“I’m here today because I am gay,” Page told the audience at Time to THRIVE, a conference to promote the welfare of LGBT young people, according to The Hollywood Reporter. “And because maybe I can make a difference. To help others have an easier and more hopeful time.”

Get push notifications with news, features and more.

“Regardless, for me, I feel a personal obligation and a social responsibility.”

During her speech on Friday (see it below), the Juno star, 26, went on to say that, “It’s weird because here I am, an actress, representing – at least in some sense – an industry that places crushing standards on all of us. Not just young people, but everyone. Standards of beauty. Of a good life. Of success. Standards that, I hate to admit, have affected me.”

“You have ideas planted in your head, thoughts you never had before, that tell you how you have to act, how you have to dress and who you have to be. I have been trying to push back, to be authentic, to follow my heart, but it can be hard.”

The Human Rights Campaign also Tweeted the news, while Page herself also took to Twitter to thank supporters.