Jason Colls, first openly gay athlete to play NBA, mak U.S. sports history

Contents:

• HERE ARE THE 6 GAY MEN WHO HAVE BEEN OUT PUBLICLY WHILE PETG PRO BASKETBALL
• THE ONLY 3 OUT, GAY NBA PLAYERS IN HISTORY
• JASON COLLS ME OUT 10 YEARS AGO, HERG A PERD OF CREASG GAY VISIBILY MEN’S SPORTS
• THE LIST OF GAY BASKETBALL PLAYERS NTU TO GROW WH ANOTHER G OUT
• A GAY NBA FAN FOUND 78 HOMOPHOBIC TWEETS BY 40 PLAYERS ON 23 TEAMS
• THE 77 WNBA PLAYERS THAT HAVE COME OUT AS GAY LBIAN, TRANS OR NON-BARY
• TOP 10 ATHLET WHO ARE RUMORED TO BE GAY
• JASON COLLS, FIRST OPENLY GAY ATHLETE TO PLAY NBA, MAK U.S. SPORTS HISTORY
• JASON COLLS SAYS HE'S GAY

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

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. The LGBT movement emerged as early as the 1870s, but homosexual rights groups didn't appear until after World War II September 1945.

THE ONLY 3 OUT, GAY NBA PLAYERS IN HISTORY

Homophobia is somethg that shouldn't have a place sports bee LGBT folks n be fans, media members, employe and executiv too. " We, as a untry, need to une and not jt bee of the tragic gay nightclub shootg Orlando, Florida, that occurred last summer.

JASON COLLS ME OUT 10 YEARS AGO, HERG A PERD OF CREASG GAY VISIBILY MEN’S SPORTS

His fay reportedly had mixed emotns towards the announcement, but he still changed the game, beg the first Divisn I men's basketball player to e out as gay and play gam. He also received praise om Colls and former NFL fensive end Michael Sam, who beme the first openly gay football player. When then-Phoenix Suns print and CEO Rick Welts me out as gay May 2011, former NBA pot guard Steve Nash pledged his support favor of the LGBT muny.

Nash said the vio, "A growg number of profsnal athlet are speakg out support of gay and lbian upl gettg married, I'm proud to be one of them.

THE LIST OF GAY BASKETBALL PLAYERS NTU TO GROW WH ANOTHER G OUT

Asi om his open support for gay rights, he also ns the Steve Nash Foundatn, which helps children who are affected by poverty, illns, abe or neglect, and creat opportuny for tn, play, and empowerment, Phoenix, Arizona, and Brish Columbia, Canada. In his hman year at Villanova, he first me out as gay to his teammate and roommate Mike Villa before nfsg to his parents three months later.

Last year, the NBA moved s 2017 All-Star Game out of Charlotte, North Carola, due to the state's law that lims anti-discrimatn protectns for lbian, gay and transgenr people. One ESPN mentator, Chris Brosard, exprsed both his admiratn for Colls’ bravery and his belief that Colls uld not be both gay and christian. Tennis great Marta Navratilova, who had somewhat unbelievably e out 1981, praised Colls and exprsed her hope that this would help end homophobia team sports and lead to more players g out.

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

The difference reactn between Ameachi’s and Colls’ statements is a sign of the growth acceptance of gay people between 2007 and 2013.

THE 77 WNBA PLAYERS THAT HAVE COME OUT AS GAY LBIAN, TRANS OR NON-BARY

Lebron Jam said “Wh teammat you have to be tstworthy, and if you’re gay and you’re not admtg that you are, then you are not tstworthy”. He actually went to unselg and beme the 1st person to sign his name to a 2013 petn to legalize gay marriage Florida. While the percentage of people who are gay vari wh different measur, there is no reputable measure sayg the number is zero.

Jason Colls me out 2013 and went on to play the next season beg the first and only openly gay active player NBA history.

Sce Jim Buzski and I started Outsports 1999, we’d talked about an active gay player the Big Four — MLB, NBA, NFL, NHL — g out publicly. Colls has seen the effects of beg out the sport firsthand, talkg repeatedly about one of his former teammat who ed anti-gay slurs the locker room eventually beg a supporter. In 10 years, Colls remas the only active NBA player to e out publicly (Bill Kennedy is an active gay NBA referee who is out; player John Amaechi me out after retirg).

TOP 10 ATHLET WHO ARE RUMORED TO BE GAY

When Rogers me out MLS, Michael Sam me out the NFL and Colls me out, I was nvced this was the begng of a seri of gay and bi athlet who would e out publicly men’s pro sports. Sce those three gay pro athlet me out the urse of a year, only two active athlet big-time Amerin men’s pro sports have e out publicly while on a team: Coll Mart MLS and Carl Nassib the NFL. Wh Derrick Gordon g out today, the UMASS shootg guard adds his name to a growg list of gay male basketball players that have e out the media.

Th far, this list of gay basketball players stands at seven players — five om the llege ranks and a uple om the NBA. A gay man the hight level of profsnal sports is what the LGBT muny was lookg for and on April 29, 2013, Colls me out to Sport Illtrated.

JASON COLLS, FIRST OPENLY GAY ATHLETE TO PLAY NBA, MAK U.S. SPORTS HISTORY

What seems to be the most mon thread all the g outs were the feelg of isolatn, fear, and lonels that an athlete feels ught between the hyper-masculy of male sports and the gay world. Tagged: rek schell / rrick gordon / Gay / gay basketball players / gay llege player / gay nba player / jason lls / john amaechi / lgbt / list / list of gay basketball players / nba player gay. The ments are among 78 tweets om 36 current and active NBA players on teams that are homophobic language, nature or even tent (four other players were on a roster when the list was piled last month, but they are no longer on an NBA team).

The players clu CJ McCollum, the print of the Natnal Basketball Players Assn., who tweeted “no homo, ” as well as superstar Kev Durant, who tweeted “shut up fag boy. “I don’t re how long ago was, shows the person’s character, my opn, ” said Derrick Gordon, who me out publicly as gay while playg basketball at UMass and who now plays profsnally Germany.

The Denver Nuggets and Utah Jazz each have four players on the list of NBA athlet who created anti-gay tweets, while the Chigo Bulls currently have three players who tweeted homophobic msag. Not cintally, Jason Colls beme the first active NBA player to e out as gay 2013, raisg signifint awarens of LGBTQ issu — and the prence of gay players — the NBA. “Culture as a whole has changed, ” said Anthony Nimo, a succsful high school basketball ach New York who me out publicly as gay several years ago.

JASON COLLS SAYS HE'S GAY

Colls — who played as an openly gay player the last uple regular-season months and then playoffs of the 2013-14 season — has been speakg to NBA rooki at the league’s annual symposium sce 2015. Readg [the tweets] remd me a lot of my journal that I kept, and I stopped after two weeks, bee was jt … you hear , but you don’t really realize how much sual homophobia there was. Speakg om my experience, there is a disnnect sometim between someone who sual homophobia, and then once you show them who you are, they will step up and have your back.

One mon slur ed var tweets was “no homo, ” which me to vogue over 10 years ago as a way for a man to pliment another man whout beg taken “the wrong way. As a ach and tor, Nimo said he still hears “no homo” around teenagers — even beg out as a gay man — though the culture basketball has improved.

The onle prence of the tweets 2022, even though wrten years ago, pots to a cultural problem wh athlet and anti-gay language. Pl Reed“Bch be gay today, bi tommorow, and pregnant sunday ha”/2014 “Why is so many niggas drs up like girls and putt on wigs tryna be funny. Mallm Hill“homo# LOL”/2011Zach LaVe “@perrnTF @juice_wilson49 both y’all r gay”/2014Javonte Green“You gay for subbg”/2016Cleveland Cavaliers.