Gay in Sports

By Eric DeBerardinis Tattoos, long hair, and piped-in pop music...America has embraced counterculture ideas before in sports, but straying from a uniform sexuality remains oddly forbidden. In a profession in which keeping ahead of the competition is vital, sports stay stuck a step behind in terms equality and acceptance. The LGBT and professional sports leagues are acronym-based organizations that arent frequently mentioned together. We are left to wonder; when will the day in which an active, male, team-sport athlete from one of the Big 4 leagues, come out? Will Sheridan is an indie artist, dabbling in fashion and living in Brooklyn. He played college basketball at Villanova and revealed the he was gay over two years ago. Sheridan recalls his upbringing and proclaims, I was socially institutionalized to be a straight male from the moment I was born. OutSports.com was ahead of the issue, launching an awareness and information site detailing gay athletes and the sports community in 1999. Cyd Zeigler Jr., one of the founders of OutSports, says, the perception is sports is still a forbidden place for gay people. Yet, the reasons remain puzzling, because as Zeigler so aptly describes, sports reflect society in a lot of ways. So, why havent we seen an out, active athlete? Zeigler believes there are three primary reasons. Greed

Why Greed Matters The phrase, its a business is thrown out more frequently in sports than ever before. The almighty dollar rules, as contracts have ballooned upwards, holdouts more common, and money handlers emerge from every direction. Egos are overly abundant and public image is revered in the same regard as bank accounts. The perception is that an athlete would seriously risk financial security along with reputation loss if they were to reveal that they were gay. John Amaechi is a psychologist, broadcaster, philanthropist, you-name-it, living in his native Manchester, England. He is also the first NBA player to reveal he was gay, with an announcement three years after his playing days were over. During his career, Amaechi struggled with ownership that failed to support him, both as a member of the Orlando Magic and Utah Jazz. He believes owners would universally select a marginal straight player over a marginal gay player if presented the choice. Job stability is a very real issue and obstacle for gay athletes considering coming out. Some players also fear lack of endorsement opportunities. Rarely do shoe companies or sports-drinks or even local car companies actively pursue or feature anyone from the LGBT community in their marketing campaigns. Additionally, a majority of pro athletes tend to adopt a certain luxurious and glorified lifestyle where perspective is often forgotten. Sheridan blames the sense of entitlement on athletes being very far removed from society.

If you are gay and in the NBA, and making millions and millions of dollars and you made it there... began Sheridan. I find it hard to believe you have life experiences that would make you empathize with the average member of the LGBT community. America demands for its athletes to assume the position of role models, but has yet to call for a gay role model. Sheridan presumes the average professional athlete lacks the necessary motivation to be a role model for the gay community. Yet, unrecognized by the masses, lies a great opportunity, both monetarily and philanthropically. There are athletes that are worth tens of millions of dollars who are still worried about their next million than the kid considering suicide in Alabama, and how he could help him, Zeigler says. Why Greed Shouldnt Matter Change is a constant in society, and many believe that the United States is willing and finally prepared to not only accept, but embrace the first active, gay, team-sport athlete. Finances should not be a concern. Active boxer, Orlando Cruz, came out in early October, 2012. Since then, he has received a myriad of endorsement opportunities, that could eventually rival his fight paydays. I know for a fact that there are Fortune 500 companies looking for the first openly gay athlete, mentions Zeigler. He remarks that the reason is that an openly gay pro athlete will have to exhibit, courage, strength, and other incredible virtues that these companies want to be associated with.

Owners worried about publicity would be able to capitalize and market their teams accordingly. Few believe less tickets will be sold because of the presence of an openly gay player. The ability to make a difference is readily available. A dissenting minority will always remain present, but a hero-like status would be established for an active, outed athlete. An actual ability to make an impact is clear. Sheridan reminisced of missed opportunities. If I had known that there were kids committing suicide, Sheridan said. I would have been in college saying of course, yes, Im gay, yes its okay to be gay, its okay to be who you are. I would have been motivated to do that. Ignorance Why Ignorance Matters Cyd Ziegler has heard it all. It would be impossible for an active athlete to handle being an outed gay. People simply wouldnt accept it. The repercussions would be overwhelming. These are arguments presented by some so-called experts, who dont really do any digging. Just because someone has a national platform does not guarantee they know everything, Ziegler argues. For a long time, the LGBT community was looked down upon. Despite progress, age-old expectations for sports stars persist. A machismo attitude is required for professional sports players. As further progress is achieved as a whole, it stops with the sports world. The British-born Amaechi, analyzes the current context of the United States.

America is this very weird, wonderful, strange, bizarre country, exclaims Amaechi. On one hand it embraces innovation and chance, while on another, it throws an anchor into the past. Stereotypes within the sports world conclude it is wrong to be gay. Amaechi details how the norm for an athlete differs from the rest of society. There is a different set of expectations about being an athlete. Part of those expectations is you will shag a lot of women, you will waste your money, you will be near illiterate, you will not be interested in academia, says Amaechi. Amaechi references that he wasnt immediately labeled gay because of his actual sexual orientation but because he enjoyed reading books and didnt degrade women. Conventions are constantly broken by gay athletes. An expectation of sexuality is blatantly explicit according to Amaechi. Sports have long fostered a culture that is unwelcoming to gays. Many reference the, jock language, that signals out words to describe a weak performance as being less manly. There are a lot of football programs, that they dont say it explicitly, but every word they use for a player who is not performing well is about being gay or a women, insists Amaechi. Why Ignorance Shouldnt Matter Zeigler has encountered and spoken to dozens of individual sport athletes that have come out. The claims of hardship and scrutiny seem untrue.

Look at every single athlete that has come out of the closet, says Zeigler. Every single one of them has had a positive experience. In fact, he said a large majority of them cannot think of a single negative response they received. Sheridan backed up this point, saying the only time he got teased, was while he was in the closet. The ability to combat a culture that is hostile to difference is crucial, according to Amaechi. A number of gay outreach programs have popped up across the country and within sports leagues. Spirit Day, sponsored by the GLAAD foundation, takes place each year in midOctober with an anti-bullying objective. The NFL, MLB, NHL, and NBA all pledged their support for the cause. Each league took to social media to relay the message of acceptance, and promote diversity. Future Hall-of-Famer, Shaquille ONeal, was one of the ambassadors for Spirit Day this year. For Amaechi, ONeals presence and willingness to help the cause, defines the progress that has been made. Just go back five years and imagine that, declares Amaechi. A recently explayer of that caliber, saying, hey, by the way, I dont think you should be bullying gay kids. There are countless other organizations in which individual athletes, teams, and entire leagues have pledged support for the issue by saying it would be a non-issue. Ultimately, we want to normalize a lifestyle, issues Sheridan. Fear of the Unknown Why Fear of the Unknown Matters

No matter how much evidence there is that it is going to be fine, the player doesnt know that for sure, because they havent seen it, says Zeigler. The first active, team-sport athlete from a major sport to come out will have their life altered. A series of seemingly unanswerable questions must be considered for athletes debating whether to come out. How will this affect my team? Amaechi and Sheridan both admit it would have been a distraction if they came out while they were playing. Amaechi was fearful his teammates would get tired of talking about it, and become aversely affected. Team dynamics play a large role in the decision. When you want to be part of a team, you cant make yourself bigger than everyone else, says Sheridan. I was never going to put myself in a position to distract myself, let alone my team." How will it affect my play? What you really want is your players to play your very best, starts Amaechi. If youre worried about how you are being treated by players, management and fans, then that is going to reduce how well you play. How will it change my life? Some athletes simply arent prepared or willing for their lives to change so drastically. When you come out, I can tell you from experience, you stop being John Amaechi, you played in the NBA, he says. You become John Amaechi, youre the gay guy that played in the NBA. Its a little frustrating.

Amaechi contested that so many players are solely defined by their occupation an athlete. But as an outed athlete, they could struggle to adapt to a new public persona. Why Fear of the Unknown Shouldnt Matter The revelation of an active athletes counterculture deemed sexuality would not appear at random. The unknown would be controlled in the best way possible to make it more of a known factor. The reveal would surely be well-orchestrated and well-planned. There is a time and a place to come out of the closet, says Zeigler. The ideal time is early in the offseason, so distractions are limited during the course of a season. Zeigler says questions would be prevalent at the start of preseason, but would quickly die down. By all accounts, athletic performance would get a boost from the revelation. A closeted athlete is simply not playing to his potential, Zeigler assures. Every coach that Zeigler has spoken with has said athletic performance has increased, and often dramatically, when a player comes out. An unimaginable weight is lifted. Sheridan tends to agree. Maybe they would thrive as a basketball player, because they wouldnt have to worry about it anymore. A majority of Amaechis and Sheridans teammates knew of their sexuality, and they didnt care. Zeigler has spoken to dozens of high-profile athletes, and they all say it wouldnt matter if they had a gay teammate. As customary in sports, winning would predicate everything.

Team owners and generable managers and coaches, they just want to win, tells Zeigler. They dont care if the player kills somebody or does drugs. If a player is helping them win, they are going to want the player to be on the team. So When Will It Happen? John Amaechi just helped organize the London Olympics. Will Sheridan recently released his first album. Both continue to spread their message. Still, there is zero semblance of a consensus when the first male, team-sport, active gay athlete will come out. If it happened next week, it wouldnt surprise me, says Zeigler. And if it didnt happen for the next five years, it wouldnt surprise me. An extensive cost-benefit analysis must be completed for the prospective athlete. To this point, no one has decided the pros outweigh the cons. Many remain hopeful. Someday it will happen, expresses Sheridan. Hopefully, I am there to see it.