Jason Collins Comes Out

Jason Collins, NBA basketball center with the Washington Wizards, came out as gay in an issue of Sports Illustrated on Monday April 29^th, marking him as the first openly gay male athlete still active in a major North American sport. 34-year-old Collins had hidden his sexuality from everyone his whole life (even his family). In his story for Sports Illustrated he revealed his motivations for coming out:

‘I realized I needed to go public when Joe Kennedy, my old roommate at Stanford and now a Massachusetts congressman, told me he had just marched in Boston’s 2012 Gay Pride Parade. I’m seldom jealous of others, but hearing what Joe had done filled me with envy. I was proud of him for participating but angry that as a closeted gay man I couldn’t even cheer my straight friend on as a spectator. If I’d been questioned, I would have concocted half truths. What a shame to have to lie at a celebration of pride. I want to do the right thing and not hide anymore. I want to march for tolerance, acceptance and understanding. I want to take a stand and say, “Me, too.”’

Collins’ announcement has been praised by many including fellow members of the NBA, NBA commissioner David Stern, President Barack Obama, and First Lady Michelle Obama to name a few. In response to criticism by ESPN basketball analyst Chris Broussard, who stated that he believed that Collins could not “live an openly homosexual lifestyle” and be a Christian, Collins stated that his coming out was “all about tolerance and acceptance and America is the best country in the world because we’re all entitled to our opinions and beliefs but we don’t have to agree.” Collins has stated that he didn’t set out to become the first out gay athlete, but he is happy to start the conversation and that he will “lead by example and show that gay players are no different from straight ones.” One can only hope that his coming out will herald a new age of greater tolerance in sports and support for gay rights.

Sources:

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/01/sports/jason-collins-took-personal-steps-before-coming-out-publicly.html?ref=sports

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/magazine/news/20130429/jason-collins-gay-nba-player/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jason_Collins