This Black, gay football player is turng his heartbreak to actn - Outsports

Contents:

• IN A LLEGE FOOTBALL FIRST, HBCU PLAYER OUT AS GAY
• HAMPTON'S BYRON PERKS BE FIRST HBCU FOOTBALL PLAYER TO E OUT AS GAY
• THIS BLACK, GAY FOOTBALL PLAYER IS TURNG HIS HEARTBREAK TO ACTN
• A NVERSATN WH T.J. CALLAN ABOUT THE HISTORY OF GAY BLACK MEN G OUT SPORTS
• MEET THE 16 OUT GAY AND BI FOOTBALL PLAYERS THE NFL’S 103-YEAR HISTORY
• BLACK, GAY COWBOY: MICHAEL SAM STEPS UP
• KEV MAXEN BE FIRST MALE ACH A US MEN’S PROFSNAL SPORTS LEAGUE TO PUBLICLY E OUT AS GAY
• FIRST OPENLY GAY HBCU FOOTBALL PLAYER REVEALS BOYIEND FOR PRI MONTH [WATCH]
• NFL PROUDLY CLAR 'FOOTBALL IS GAY' NEW VIO
• HERE ARE EIGHT OUT AND PROUD MALE GAY FOOTBALLERS
• RAIRS’ CARL NASSIB ANNOUNC HE’S GAY, AN N.F.L. FIRST

IN A LLEGE FOOTBALL FIRST, HBCU PLAYER OUT AS GAY

A Hampton Universy football player me out publicly as gay, a first for a football player at a historilly Black llege or universy, acrdg to, an LGBTQ sports news se.

Byron Perks, a Divisn I fensive back for the Hampton Universy Pirat, me out as gay an Instagram story shared Wednday. I’m gay, let be known that this is not a ‘cisn’ or a ‘choice.

’ Y, this is who I am, this is who I’ve been, and this is who I’m gog to be, ” Perks wrote the story, acrdg to (Instagram stori are only available for 24 hours, so Perks’ origal story is no longer viewable) several Divisn I football players have e out as gay durg their llege reers — cludg the College of Idaho’s Cy Hicks, Amherst College’s Avery Saffold and Kansas State’s Stt Frantz — Perks is the first to do so at one of the untry’s 101 HBCUs, acrdg to both Outsports and Perks. Perks told Outsports that he’d like to help other gay Black men who are stgglg wh their sexualy. “There hasn’t been an out gay football athlete at an HBCU.

HAMPTON'S BYRON PERKS BE FIRST HBCU FOOTBALL PLAYER TO E OUT AS GAY

“I’m sure the young man has heard his fair share of slurs om teammat unaware that he is gay. Cyd Zeigler, the -founr of Outsports, noted that “so many ‘first’ gay athlet — John Amaechi, Jason Colls, Michael Sam — have been Black men.

THIS BLACK, GAY FOOTBALL PLAYER IS TURNG HIS HEARTBREAK TO ACTN

Byron Perks, a fensive back at Hampton Universy, me out as gay, and he is believed to be the first football player om a Historilly Black College and Universy (HBCU) to e out publicly.

”“I’m gay, let be known that this is not a ‘cisn’ or a ‘choice.

A NVERSATN WH T.J. CALLAN ABOUT THE HISTORY OF GAY BLACK MEN G OUT SPORTS

"Especially at an HBCU, young Black gay men need an outlet, ” he said. There hasn’t been an out gay football athlete at an HBCU.

MEET THE 16 OUT GAY AND BI FOOTBALL PLAYERS THE NFL’S 103-YEAR HISTORY

What I did stggle wh was beg a gay football player, feelg as if the tersectnaly of homosexualy and athletics uld not exist the same space. Havg stggled beg a gay football player and feelg that there was no purpose my life, there were tim when I thought of mtg suici, feelg that there was no way out to pe my realy. Perkz/@rlnassib/@rkrelentls)When Kansas State offensive tackle and NFL hopeful Stt Frantz me out to the natn as gay, he shared that his teammat (to whom he'd e out earlier) had warmly received the news, a sign the most alpha of locker rooms may fally be ready for equaly.

Here's a list of players llege and pro ball who have proved you n be gay or bi and still n the gntlet.

BLACK, GAY COWBOY: MICHAEL SAM STEPS UP

Roy "Sugar Bear" Simmons, an offensive leman for the New York Giants and Washgton Redsks, beme the send NFL player ever to publicly reveal he was gay.

So Coach Vce Lombardi knew McDonald was gay when he took over learship of the team 1969, but ma clear there would be no discrimatn his locker room, those close to the legend say. Cornerback Wa Davis, who played preason wh the Tennsee Tans, Seattle Seahawks and Washgton Redsks and spent two seasons wh NFL Europe teams Berl Thunr and Barcelona Dragons, me out as gay 2012, nearly a after his retirement.

He would later nfirm his sexualy on CNN and s down wh ESPN to discs the challeng of growg up gay Jamai and playg football while closeted. He later cled to sign wh the Tennsee Tans and Dallas Cowboys before g out as gay at 24, he told Philalphia Magaze revealed to the magaze that he'd dated a male cheerlear at Purdue who had threatened to out him then.

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

He would later move to San Francis and jo the Fog, a gay gby team, and pen a g-out blog post 2015. Wyatt Pertet, a special teams player and receiver for Capal Universy, will be a sophomore this season. The Bachelor star and former football player (who was signed by the San Diego Chargers as an undrafted ee agent and was on the practice squad of the Oakland Rairs and the Philalphia Eagl) me out as gay April of 2021, sayg he had fally e to terms wh his sexualy and the "next step all of this was sort of lettg people know.

"He wanted everyone to know he was "still the same Colton everybody met on TV" and is "proud to be gay. The Rairs leman ma NFL history durg Pri Month 2021 when he me out as gay a heartfelt Instagram post, beg the first active NFL player to e out as member of the LGBTQ+ muny.

I jt wanted to take a quick moment to say that I'm gay.

FIRST OPENLY GAY HBCU FOOTBALL PLAYER REVEALS BOYIEND FOR PRI MONTH [WATCH]

The Hampton Universy player ma history October of 2022 when he me out as gay an Instagram Story post, beg the first out gay football player at a Historilly Black College or Universy.

"Speakg to OutSports, he ntued: "Especially at an HBCU, young Black gay men need an outlet.

There hasn't been an out gay football athlete at an HBCU.

NFL PROUDLY CLAR 'FOOTBALL IS GAY' NEW VIO

Callan has long regnized the tersectnaly of beg a gay man, a black man and a gay black man. Callan, 22, left the Miami program after experiencg what he scribed as a hostile environment, where gay people were spoken of rogatory terms, ultimately keepg him the closet. Outsports recently spoke wh Callan about how the history of black athlet g out, and specifilly black gay men, has been particularly meangful to him.

Two proment exampl whose g out announcements had an impact beyond sports are Jason Colls, the first NBA player to e out 2013, and Michael Sam, the first openly gay player drafted the NFL 2014. Derrick Gordon was the first active Divisn I men’s basketball player to e out as gay 2014.

”A person of lor has to al wh not only beg gay, but beg black, and then beg black and gay, ” Callan said. In addn, Callan says gay black men often al wh what he lls the hypermasculy black culture.

HERE ARE EIGHT OUT AND PROUD MALE GAY FOOTBALLERS

Further, Callan says that as a black man the larger gay culture “you do experience racism wh the gay muny.

As an example of the latter, he relled meetg one whe gay man who told Callan, “‘I thought you were gonna be ghetto, you’re not, ’ and I’m like, ‘What are you talkg about? And you would thk that a lot of gay men would unrstand and empathize wh the fact that you are a part of multiple margalized muni, but a lot of s, there is a lack of unrstandg. Michael Sam ma history 2014 as the first openly gay player drafted the NFL.

RAIRS’ CARL NASSIB ANNOUNC HE’S GAY, AN N.F.L. FIRST

He also appreciated as a football player that someone like Sam uld e out what is nsired a hypermascule sport bee challenged the ia and stereotyp lkg beg gay to “beg weak. “I felt very secure about [beg gay] and I feel like maybe they picked up on bee I didn’t want to speak about . Sce g out, Callan says he has received nothg but posive ments and support, and says his only regret durg his llege years was not havg other active gay football players he uld reach out to.

The NFL has played for more than 100 years and there have been 16 gay or bi players to e out publicly. 16 and the first one to e out as gay while on an active roster.

Over the years, Outsports has known of a few other players who are gay but have never e out, even when retired.