Why There Few Openly Gay Athlet In Men's Profsnal Sports : NPR

Contents:

• NBA STAR MAGIC JOHNSON'S PRI AS GAY SON STEPS OUT HAND--HAND WH BOYIEND
• MAGIC JOHNSON ON LEARNG TO ACCEPT HIS GAY SON: 'HE CHANGED ME'
• MAGIC JOHNSON SAYS HE SUPPORTS GAY SON EJ 'A LN PERCENT': 'THIS IS REALLY WONRFUL FOR HIM'
• PRO ATHLET WHO HAVE E OUT AS GAY: SPORTS STARS WHO INTIFY AS LGBTQ
• WHY THERE ARE FEW OPENLY GAY ATHLET IN MEN'S PROFSNAL SPORTS
• NORTH AMERI’S FOUR BIGGT PRO SPORTS LEAGU HAVE BEEN AROUND A BED 398 YEARS. THEY’VE HAD TWO OPENLY GAY ACTIVE PLAYERS
• ATHLET WHO ARE GAY

NBA STAR MAGIC JOHNSON'S PRI AS GAY SON STEPS OUT HAND--HAND WH BOYIEND

You might rell Rosevelt Colv is a lebacker and a two-time Super Bowl champn for the XXXVIII and XXXIX gam, but did you know his son Xavier is openly gay? Wae has built up a followg of dited fans and has bee a highly rpected public figure the world of dance spe of his sexual orientatn (gay).

Ahman Green, Runng back, Green Bay PackersGreen had never talked publicly about havg a lbian sister and a gay brother until he chatted wh me at an NFLPA event 2012. DeAndre Hopks, Wi receiver, Hoton TexansHopks talked about his lbian sister wh Outsports a uple years ago, revealg one of his bt iends was the ex-boyiend of Calv Kle and that he would wele a gay teammate.

Michael Irv, Hall of Fame wi receiver, Dallas CowboysWhen Irv graced the ver of Out magaze 2011, he did so to show support for the gay muny and to talk for the first time about his love for his late gay brother, Vghn. Jevon Kearse, fensive end, Tennsee Tans & Philalphia Eagl"The Freak, " as he was known, shared his love of his gay for the first time on the same day Green talked about his siblgs. Isiah Thomas, Hall of Fame guard, Detro PistonsThomas appeared a NOH8 mpaign photo wh his gay son, Zeke, who was the official DJ of the 2014 NBA All-Star game.

MAGIC JOHNSON ON LEARNG TO ACCEPT HIS GAY SON: 'HE CHANGED ME'

Sports legend and AIDS activist Magic Johnson is beg herald by many for supportg his 20-year-old son, EJ, who is openly inic basketball star, 53, gave a lengthy terview to tailg the nversatn he had wh his son at "a young age" about beg gay and the stggl EJ has faced sce.

"Johnson, a longtime ally of the lbian, gay, bisexual and transgenr muny, explaed that his son's experience remd him of the plight of several young men he's enuntered through his "Magic" Johnson wh his son EJ (left); his wife, Cookie Johnson; and their dghter Elisa Johnson.

MAGIC JOHNSON SAYS HE SUPPORTS GAY SON EJ 'A LN PERCENT': 'THIS IS REALLY WONRFUL FOR HIM'

In June 2021, NFL fensive end Carl Nassib me out as gay a vio posted to his Instagram, addg he donated $100, 000 to The Trevor Project, an anizatn that foc on suici preventn LGBTQ youth after he stggled wh his sexualy for 15 years. The athlete quickly ma a name for herself a seri of TV terviews, where she voiced her support of women's rights and LGBTQ rights as an openly gay woman. "I thk female athlet, general, are at the foreont of every prott general bee we're gay, we're women, we're women of lor, we're sort of everythg all at one time, " Rapoe told NBC news 2019.

The thgs you hear as a child—every time you hear someone say 'f----t' or talk bad about a gay guy, or see somethg on TV and make fun of that. " He scribed hidg his sexualy while playg for the Utah Jazz, but said some teammat who spected he was gay were welg about a 2007 terview on "Outsi the L, " Amaechi, who played five seasons the NBA, said he thought there were other gay players the league, but said 's "terrifyg" for some to e out.

Greg Louganis won four gold medals and one silver medal at three Olympic Gam om 1976 to 1988 as a diver, but wasn't until 1994 that he me out as gay.

PRO ATHLET WHO HAVE E OUT AS GAY: SPORTS STARS WHO INTIFY AS LGBTQ

""If I n show that I'm out and I'm fe, then hopefully the younger generatn will feel the same way, " Grer said the same year, Grer recieved a multi-ln dollar al om Nike, and beme the first openly gay basketball player endorsed by the brand, acrdg to The married her wife, Cherelle, 2019. Insir is highlightg out and proud athlet honor of the annual celebratn of those who intify as lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr, queer, and morn-day stars like USWNT pta Megan Rapoe and WNBA legend, Diana Trasi, are NBA player Jason Pl Colls, former NFL nng back David Kopay, and tennis in Billie Jean Kg were trailblazers their rpective sports.

Longtime NFL offensive leman Ryan O'Callaghan me out as gay publicly 2017 via a story for Outsports and revealed that he had long planned to kill himself once his football reer was over. Jason Pl Colls spent 13 seasons the NBA and, after g out 2013, beme the first out gay athlete actively playg any of the four major North Amerin pro sports leagu.

Olympic skater Adam Rippon ma history as the first out gay man to jo Team USA for a wter Olympics and, Pyeongchang, he beme the first to w a medal at the Gam. Layshia Clarendon, a “biracial, black, gay, female, genrqueer and Christian” WBNA basketball player for the Atlanta Dream, has proven to be a formidable force both on and off the urt. Amaechi has been an outspoken cric of homophobia sports, and works to promote an clive and open environment for LGBTQ basketball players across the U.

WHY THERE ARE FEW OPENLY GAY ATHLET IN MEN'S PROFSNAL SPORTS

She me out 2019 - a year after India's Supreme Court crimalised gay sex - and faced public backlash om people her village, as well as her parents. The two-time Pro-Bowler never publicly me out as gay before he died of Aids aged was selected the nth round of the 1965 NFL draft by the Washgton Redsks, now lled the Washgton Football Team. "Owens, who often roomed wh Smh, said that Smh lived fear and never me out bee he worried if people knew he was gay, his reer would be died two months after revealg he had AidsIn 1986, Smh beme the first profsnal athlete to announce he had been diagnosed wh Aids.

Tiln was openly gay and one of the most domant figur US sport durg the 1920sDpe those nvictns, a 1950 Associated Prs poll, Tiln was unanimoly voted the greatt tennis player of the half-century. It is a fact, that there are untls men and women playg and participatg profsnal sports today, who are homosexual and hi om public knowledge.

NORTH AMERI’S FOUR BIGGT PRO SPORTS LEAGU HAVE BEEN AROUND A BED 398 YEARS. THEY’VE HAD TWO OPENLY GAY ACTIVE PLAYERS

Simply bee of the jtifiable fear, of what might happen to them if fans, ach, teammat and y sponsors disvered the profsnal athlet have ‘e out’ as gay? Louis 2014, Michael Sam beme the first openly gay player drafted to the opened up about the journey that saw him step away om football for some time before g back to the game he lov wh the Barcelona Dragons. “Sce Febary and my big announcement, this has been a whole [lot of] speculatn of the first openly gay football player, but you know what?

A former fensive end for both the Cowboys and the Bucneers, Rsell was the talk of the town 2019 when he announced via an say on ESPN, that he was Vegas Rairs' Carl Nassib beme the first active NFL player to announce that he is gay. Defensive end Carl Nassib announced he was gay via a social media post, before also explag that he had donated $100, 000 to The Trevor Project - an anizatn that foc on suici preventn LGBTQ youth.

Nassib is the first openly gay active player the Pl Colls - BasketballProvg that this is not limed to any specific sport, let’s jump to the NBA where 2013, Jason Pl Colls ma history by beg the first person to openly e out any of the four major profsnal sports.

ATHLET WHO ARE GAY

Yet, as you’ve surely noticed by now, a large part of what people talk about when to the former star, is not her prows on the urt, but rather her 2005 admissn that she is gay.

” After beg an openly gay woman the league, Swoops would go on to retire Rogers - SoccerInto the world of soccer we go, where we fd Robbie Rogers who played profsnally England up until 2013 when he announced he was gay and leavg the sport.