Tushnet came out as a lesbian around age 13 or 14 and her family was supportive.[7] She entered Yale University in 1996 as "a happy lesbian".[7] Raised in a secular Jewish household, she converted to Catholicism in 1998 at age 19 during her sophomore year.[3][9] After college, she joined the National Catholic Register. She was also a researcher at the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research, a conservative think tank.[10]
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Tushnet is celibate due to the Catholic Church's teaching on sex outside of heterosexual marriage.[3][9] She does not support same-sex marriage, having stated that marriage should be reserved for heterosexuals, whose "relationships can be either uniquely dangerous or uniquely fruitful. Thus it makes sense to have an institution dedicated to structuring and channeling them."[7]
"I really think the most important thing is, I really like being gay and I really like being Catholic," she said in a 2010 interview with The New York Times. "If nobody ever calls me self-hating again, it will be too soon."[7]