Moment of Pri: Jason Colls sr as an out gay athlete - Outsports

Contents:

• OUR 30TH MOMENT OF PRI: JASON COLLS SR FOR THE FIRST TIME AS AN OUT GAY ATHLETE
• HERE ARE THE 6 GAY MEN WHO HAVE BEEN OUT PUBLICLY WHILE PETG PRO BASKETBALL
• NBA, NETS, ACH AND PLAYERS HAVE ALL BOTCHED THE RPONSE TO KEV DURANT’S ANTI-GAY MENTS
• THE ONLY 3 OUT, GAY NBA PLAYERS IN HISTORY
• A GAY NBA FAN FOUND 78 HOMOPHOBIC TWEETS BY 40 PLAYERS ON 23 TEAMS

OUR 30TH MOMENT OF PRI: JASON COLLS SR FOR THE FIRST TIME AS AN OUT GAY ATHLETE

Today, for the last of our 30 Moments of Pri, we revis Febary 27, 2014: the first NBA game which Jason Colls sred pots as an openly gay pro basketball player. It was his first game sce g out as gay. He beme the first active male athlete one of the big pro sports leagu to e out publicly as gay.

And I’m gay, ” Colls wrote “I didn’t set out to be the first openly gay athlete playg a major Amerin team sport.

He later wrote The Players’ Tribune about the irony that some people believe out gay players provi a “distractn” to straight athlet. “I had never felt more fortable playg basketball than I was as an openly gay man.

HERE ARE THE 6 GAY MEN WHO HAVE BEEN OUT PUBLICLY WHILE PETG PRO BASKETBALL

The energy volved hidg the strs, shame, and fear of beg gay is a full-time job. When John Amaechi me out publicly 2007, he was ahead of his time, sharg that he’s gay and a former profsnal basketball player.

Sce Colls showed the world you uld be a gay man profsnal basketball, there has been a trickle of gay athlet to follow, most recently former NBA player and current Atralian pro basketball player Isaac Humphri.

NBA, NETS, ACH AND PLAYERS HAVE ALL BOTCHED THE RPONSE TO KEV DURANT’S ANTI-GAY MENTS

Here are the gay men who have blazed a trail on basketball urts around the world.

THE ONLY 3 OUT, GAY NBA PLAYERS IN HISTORY

The NBA, s teams and players have pursued many iativ to support the LGBTQ muny and gay athlet the last few years.

Collectively they have all also dropped the ball rpondg to graphic homophobic ments by Brooklyn Nets superstar Kev Durant. Many people across the NBA want homophobia and homophobic language sports to go away.

So how did almost every sgle one of them rpond to Kev Durant — one of the league’s biggt stars and a future Hall of Famer — g lerally the most graphic homophobic language I’ve ever seen om a profsnal athlete? While wearg shirts lobbyg for social jtice and g their platforms to ph for equaly and acceptance, when me to one of their own last week — aga, g the most graphic homophobic language I’ve ever heard om any profsnal athlete ever — NBA players closed ranks and stayed quiet. One player even fend Durant and his e of graphic anti-gay language, sayg, “He didn’t do nothg wrong.

A GAY NBA FAN FOUND 78 HOMOPHOBIC TWEETS BY 40 PLAYERS ON 23 TEAMS

Durant’s anti-gay actns were multiple, repeated, and n’t be said enough: signed by Durant to be graphic and to elic a negative rponse.

Whether the cricket-rponse is the league downplayg homophobia or givg a future Hall of Famer a pass, we should get answers. In 2015, missner Adam Silver’s rponse after fg and spendg Rajon Rondo 2015 for g a gay slur towards an official explaed the power of losg playg time.

“In a time where social jtice is at the foreont, pecially the NBA, here you have a suatn where one of the bt players the history of the NBA is g very clear homophobic language to try to hurt somebody. Nimo went further and explaed why this episo — a private nversatn laced wh homophobia — is exactly the opportuny for more nversatn, not somethg to try to ignore:.