The NFL Can’t Jt Say “Football Is Gay” While Ignorg Its Own Homophobia and Racism | Them

Contents:

• WHY THERE ARE FEW OPENLY GAY ATHLET IN MEN'S PROFSNAL SPORTS
• OPN: NFL'S CLARATN THAT 'FOOTBALL IS GAY' SIGNALS LEAGUE'S ONGOG EVOLUTN
• KEV MAXEN BE FIRST MALE ACH A US MEN’S PROFSNAL SPORTS LEAGUE TO PUBLICLY E OUT AS GAY
• NFL SAYS 'FOOTBALL IS GAY' NEW MERCIAL THAT MAK CLEAR S SUPPORT OF LGBTQ+ MUNY
• THE NFL CAN’T JT SAY “FOOTBALL IS GAY” WHILE IGNORG ITS OWN HOMOPHOBIA AND RACISM
• NFL SHAR NEW VIO THAT SAYS ‘FOOTBALL IS GAY’
• NFL CLAR “FOOTBALL IS GAY”
• NFL GO TO NEW EXTREME, LNCH 'FOOTBALL IS GAY' CAMPAIGN
• FOOTBALL IS SO GAY: FORCED MASCULY PRO SPORTS HALTS SOCIAL PROGRS
• THE NFL IS FAKG AS IF R, AGA – THIS TIME ’S ABOUT GAY PEOPLE
• WATCH: ‘FOOTBALL IS GAY’: NFL RELEAS PRO-LGBT AD
• NFL SAYS: ‘FOOTBALL IS GAY. FOOTBALL IS QUEER. FOOTBALL IS ACCEPTG.’
• WHY ARE MORE FEMALE PROFSNAL FOOTBALLERS OPENLY GAY OR BISEXUAL THAN MALE PLAYERS?
• JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS ASSISTANT COACH KEV MAXEN COM OUT AS GAY HISTORIC ANNOUNCEMENT

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

When Nashville Predators prospect Le Prokop me out this week, was the first time an active player unr ntract to an NHL team had ever publicly acknowledged they were gay.

Overnight, Prokop's announcement doubled the number of out gay athlet currently playg the untry's four major men's sports — football, basketball, baseball and hockey. They also highlighted the arth of openly gay players the hypermascule world of U. Though many retired former players have e out, is more unual for male profsnal athlet to say they are gay while still playg.

Gay male athlet face cultural barriers Part of the reason for the lack of out gay players men's profsnal sports uld be that there are jt fewer of them the game. Rory Magrath, a rearcher at Solent Universy England, has suggted that 's possible gay men are unrreprented profsnal sports. "Gay men are a fe rource, so they n't exist great numbers every quarter, " Magrath told "Gay men are overreprented some areas, and as a nsequence are gog to be unrreprented sports.

OPN: NFL'S CLARATN THAT 'FOOTBALL IS GAY' SIGNALS LEAGUE'S ONGOG EVOLUTN

That uld be due to the mascule culture at the center of the major sports, experts say, creatg an environment that is ls welg to gay athlet. Magrath helped thor a study that found that male athlet who me out as gay while still playg sports were largely met wh acceptance by their teammat. Robbie Rogers ma history 2013 when he took the field for the Los Angel Galaxy after as the first openly gay player profsnal U.

NBA player Jason Colls, who me out 2013 while he was still playg the league, later told NPR " went great" when he scribed the perd after announcg he was gay.

After Michael Sam beme the first openly gay athlete to be drafted to the NFL 2014, then-Miami Dolphs safety Don Jon tweeted "horrible, " rultg penalti and a spensn. David Kopay, a former NFL nng back who me out 1975, was unable to land a profsnal achg job after he announced publicly that he was gay.

KEV MAXEN BE FIRST MALE ACH A US MEN’S PROFSNAL SPORTS LEAGUE TO PUBLICLY E OUT AS GAY

There are key differenc the cultur of men's and women's athletics While few active players the major men's sports leagu have e out, many female profsnal athlet have said publicly that they're gay, om U. In a vio shared on Twter on Monday, the Natnal Football League clared, "Football is gay."In whe letters on a black background, the word "gay" was then replaced wh words cludg "lbian," "betiful," "queer," "transgenr," "power" and "life."The vio's fal claratn: "Football is for everyone."The NFL released the vio rponse to Las Vegas Rairs player Carl Nassib g out last week, league spokperson Samantha Roth told Outsports. Nassib is the first active NFL player to e out as gay.

"Football is gay, " the ad began – whe words on a black screen wh fat cheerg the background. "The statement me jt ls than a week after Las Vegas Rairs fensive end Carl Nassib announced to the world that he is gay, makg him the first active NFL player to be out.

NFL SAYS 'FOOTBALL IS GAY' NEW MERCIAL THAT MAK CLEAR S SUPPORT OF LGBTQ+ MUNY

And now, wh the latt ad mpaign, league officials aim to ensure that the NFL wraps s arms not only around Nassib but other gay players who to date have kept their sexualy private, and the LGBTQ+ muny as a whole. The signs of such groundwork have been there: Would the NFL have reached this pot had not been for Michael Sam, the Mizzou fensive leman who announced he was gay leadg up to the draft 2014?

This isn’t your father’s asked about Nassib's announcement, numero players, ach and ont-office employe who spoke wh USA TODAY Sports surmised that there has never been a better and safer time the league for people of diverse walks of life to speak their that partly explas why many players across the league exprsed support both publicly and privately when Nassib ma his announcementNassib wasn’t the first gay player the NFL, and he certaly will not be the 's a belief among some who work wh the NFL that many wh the league have started to unrstand that jt as the lor of a person’s sk has no impact on their abily to ntribute to the succs of a anchise, neher should sexual orientatn. No doubt, gay players and staffers, who have kept their sexual orientatns private, have craved siar, as the NFL clar, “Football is gay. Kev Maxen has bee the first male ach a US men’s profsnal sports league to e out as gay.

Per Outsports, as of September 2022, there have only ever been 16 players NFL history to publicly e out as gay or bisexual. Carl Nassib beme the first active NFL player league history to announce that he is gay 2021. Per Outsports, Maxen is the “first publicly out male ach a major Amerin men’s pro sports league, ” wh WNBA ach Curt Miller, who publicly me out to the media as gay 2015, also a publicly out male ach an Amerin profsnal sports league.

THE NFL CAN’T JT SAY “FOOTBALL IS GAY” WHILE IGNORG ITS OWN HOMOPHOBIA AND RACISM

The 30-send spot begs wh the le, "Football is gay" as light cheerg plays the background.

The NFL created que a stir on social media Monday after tweetg out a vio proclaimg that “football is gay” as part of an apparent attempt to rebrand as a more clive league. “Football is gay, ” the ad not whe text agast a black backdrop — and then the word “gay” is swapped out for a lany of other inti and adjectiv: “lbian, ” “betiful, ” “strong, ” “queer, ” “transgenr, ” “heart, ” and fally, “everyone.

”The vio on the heels of 28-year-old Las Vegas Rairs fensive end Carl Nassib beg the first active, openly gay NFL player earlier this month. Nasib donated $100, 000 to the Trevor Project after publicly g out a vio announcement — and the NFL has pledged to match that donatn, directg viewers of the “football is gay” vio to The Trevor Project’s se for more rmatn about how fans n support the mental health of LGBTQ+ needls to say, plenty of homophobic NFL fans weren’t pleased wh their favore sport beg lled “gay, ” or wh the league changg s logo to Pri lors for the month of June. I’ll spare you the nasts, but if you’ve got a strong stomach, you n scroll through the repli to the “football is gay” vio to see the ristance to clivy for said, the league self is also partially to blame here.

NFL SHAR NEW VIO THAT SAYS ‘FOOTBALL IS GAY’

You n’t jt say “football is gay” and erase years’ worth of tellg silence on social issu like LGBTQ+ equaly and racial jtice. Louis Rams draftee Michael Sam me out as gay back 2014.

NFL CLAR “FOOTBALL IS GAY”

It would be hard to image the NFL makg a “football is gay” vio 7 years ago, when issu like same-sex marriage and transgenr rtroom rights were still at the center of the culture war. So feels disgenuo to sudnly pivot toward clive feelgood statements now that a whe gay man has e forward. It’s clear the NFL don’t have the sort of welg and clive track rerd that uld back up a statement like “football is gay.

The NFL has released a new vio that clar “football is gay” durg Pri Month.

NFL GO TO NEW EXTREME, LNCH 'FOOTBALL IS GAY' CAMPAIGN

The vio one week after Las Vegas Rairs player Carl Nassib me out as gay on social media, makg him the first active NFL player to do so. The vio  a week after Las Vegas Rairs player Carl Nassib me out as gay on social media. In the NFL’s new vio, whe text cross the screen, readg, “Football is gay.

CARL NASSIB IS THE FIRST ACTIVE NFL PLAYER TO COME OUT AS GAY. One week after Las Vegas Rairs fensive end Carl Nassib beme the first active NFL player to e out as a gay man, the NFL has released a vio supportg the LGBTQ+ muny.

FOOTBALL IS SO GAY: FORCED MASCULY PRO SPORTS HALTS SOCIAL PROGRS

In the vio self, there’s a black screen and spurts of overla text that ntually fish a sentence that begs wh “Football is.” “Football is gay. A NFL spot opens wh text readg: "Football Is Gay.

“Football is gay, ” the new film opens. The vio shows simple text readg “football is gay, ” then, the last word is nsistently replaced, first to say that “football is lbian, ” followed by “betiful, ” then “queer. Nassib, a fensive leman for the Las Vegas Rairs, me out publicly last week as gay an Instagram post.

Football is gay.

THE NFL IS FAKG AS IF R, AGA – THIS TIME ’S ABOUT GAY PEOPLE

Acrdg to a report OutSports, the vio -- entled Football Is for Everyone -- is meant not jt to support Carl Nassib, the first active NFL player to e out as gay, but also let other players, as well as LGBTQ+ fans, know they're jt as important and wele. "The first le to which Rapoport refers is the simple "football is gay" that appears on the screen to open the vio.

"More than merely enuragg the LGBTQ+ muny to rema part of the league's fan base, the vio is also a statement on jt how far the league has progrsed on the issue of gay athlet. "Nassib famoly me out as gay a post to Instagram last week that has sce gone viral. One week after Carl Nassib of the Las Vegas Rairs beme the first active NFL player to e out as gay, the league is beatg the Pri Month dm a new mpaign.

WATCH: ‘FOOTBALL IS GAY’: NFL RELEAS PRO-LGBT AD

“Football is gay, ” a vio proclaims, followed by the words, “Football is lbian. The Super Bowl ad of panrg#footballisgay? “football is gay”…”football is lbian”…”football is queer”…”football is transgenr”.

Football is gay” — Liz Franczak (@liz_anczak) June 28, 2021. Nassib announced that he is gay an Instagram post. That’s an unrstatement — the Sewickley, Pennsylvania, thor and illtrator actually thks the entire sport is really, really gay.

NFL SAYS: ‘FOOTBALL IS GAY. FOOTBALL IS QUEER. FOOTBALL IS ACCEPTG.’

Kichi’s most recent picture book, “Football is Soooo Gay” is a diatribe to what he nsirs an sential tth: football is an herently homosexual sport. Men only play , obss over and dite their liv to , acrdg to Kichi — who is openly gay — to fake their way through heterosexualy.

“The homosexual phenomena is not so passive. Science documents the homosexual urge [exists] one gree or another a majory of men, ” Kichi said an email.

A page om Kichi’s book, “Football is soooooo gay. Watchg men watch men tight spanx lightly spank each other for support before they head for a group shower do make me thk there’s somethg nately homoerotic happeng.

WHY ARE MORE FEMALE PROFSNAL FOOTBALLERS OPENLY GAY OR BISEXUAL THAN MALE PLAYERS?

But Kichi said ’s all a se so men n prove they’re straight by actg gay and not gettg turned on. For self-intified men, growg up often means sheddg any trace of femy or homosexualy — two characteristics many people mistakenly associate. The simple existence of sr of theori related to masculy and homosexualy is a sign of the tim.

Louis Rams’ draft pick 2014, was gog to be the first openly gay man to play the NFL — until he wasn’t. “Women athlet, gay or straight, faced people llg them butch, llg them lbians, ” Ruck said. In the same way that men put on shows of tense masculy to ny any trace of homosexualy, women began playg what Crosby lled the “hetero sexy game.

Which isn’t to say that gay pro football and basketball players are hopels — and tst me, nsirg that there are over 1, 600 players the NFL and around 400 players the NBA, there are more homosexual athlet than Sam and Colls.

JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS ASSISTANT COACH KEV MAXEN COM OUT AS GAY HISTORIC ANNOUNCEMENT

So the paradox be that a lack of openly gay men highly-publicized pro sports disurag young men om breakg the forced heterosexual fa early on.