*edit* ESPN Opinion Writer Self Hating? (NBA-R)
Guzzo
8,611 Posts
I posted the article about this player coming out in the NBA thread but I thought talking about this article would make for interesting soulstrut discussionhttp://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/sto...mp;lid=tab4pos1Another ex-athlete comes out? Not impressed[/b]By LZ GrandersonPage 2[i]I am so over gay people.Specifically, John Amaechi.Not him personally -- I hear he's a delightful guy -- but gay people like him.You know, the athlete who comes out after retiring, writes a tell-all, and then hears how courageous he is from straight columnists trying to appear "evolved" even though I've heard the word "f-----" come out of their mouths just as freely as some of the athletes they write about. I'm over it because we've all been here before. Like a remake of "Groundhog Day" featuring the cast of "Will and Grace," the country works itself up into a frenzy any time the subject comes up, true or false. Amaechi comes out ("Gasp, there's a pro gay athlete!") or Mike Piazza holds a 2002 news conference ("I'm not gay"), or the suggestive Snickers commercial airs, and then we go back to our same routine until another "courageous" soul comes out when he feels has nothing to lose.John Amaechi will discuss his book Sunday on "Outside The Lines" (9:30 a.m. ET, ESPN). The book will be released Feb. 20.I do not mean to belittle Amaechi's experience or the experiences of any other athlete who comes out after retirement. I am friends with gay, former pro athletes[/b] and look forward to reading Amaechi's book (to be published by ESPN Books). But I can't help but wonder: When will somebody simply man up?[/b] That is, come out while he is still playing and finally demystify this whole gay athlete thing once and for all.I've read the magazines.I've seen the interviews.Hell, I've written the stories.Closeted athletes are miserable.They have thoughts of suicide, they can't perform as well as they'd like, they live in constant anxiety of being found out, and while their heterosexual teammates are out chasing skirts during road trips, they stay locked up in their hotel rooms afraid to make eye contact with anyone because the bellhop's gaydar may go off.Get over it.An athlete in 2007 who stays in the closet during his playing days does more to support homophobia in sports than coming out after retirement does to combat it.But what I am suggesting is that by not living the truth you are supporting the lie. The lie that gay men are inherently weaker than straight men. We can go in circles about whether homosexuality is a sin, but that's not what this argument is about. It's about whether a gay athlete can perform on the field or on the court at the same level of excellence and intensity as a straight athlete. I've talked to a lot athletes over the years about having a gay teammate, and their top objection is they believe a gay dude won't be able to pull his own weight. The whole shower thing is a close second.Tracy McGrady was a former teammate of Amaechi's in Orlando. "I"m the type of dude who don't give a f---" says McGrady. "I don't care what you are as long as you're doing what you're supposed to be doing on the court. You could be the most flaming (guy) on earth and answer to boyfriend and kiss him after the game as long as you don't try it with me. I just want to win. And that's how I am. To each his own, be yourself, and be proud of it. Everything else is just a bunch of crap."I agree with T-Mac. Everything else is a bunch of crap. That's why I say it's time to man up. Life as an openly gay man cannot be any worse than life as a closeted one at this point. Look around, whatever endorsements you might lose for being gay you will be able to make up from other companies looking for buzz. High school athletes are out and changing lives. Isaiah Washington of "Grey's Anatomy" had to go into rehab to keep his job after directing an anti-gay slur at a co-worker. Twenty years ago, it would have been the co-worker worried about his job. This isn't "Gaytopia," but the movie studios aren't forcing you to marry a woman like they did in the old days.And don't hand me the it's-harder-in-sports crap, either. I've been an out sportswriter for years now. I've been on TV, had my face in one of the largest newspapers in the country and my mug is sitting right next to this column. I've been called names in work meetings, received death threats and told I was going to hell more times than the devil. But you know what, I don't give a rip. Because at the end of the day I know walking within what I know is true for me is a lot easier than trying to run from it. Just ask Jim McGreevy. Or Mark Foley. Or Ted Haggard, who appears to still be running.Better yet, why don't you ask yourself. You have worked extremely hard to become a professional athlete. You are young, rich and famous-ish. This is supposed to be the best time of your life. Isn't it about time you have the courage to try to enjoy it?LZ Granderson is a senior writer for ESPN The Magazine and host of the ESPN360 talk show "Game Night." LZ can be reached at [Email]l_granderson@yahoo.com.[/Email]
Comments
sorry, I guess I glanced over the part about him being gay, I just read all this "get over it" stuff and was kinda shocked. Still I sense some serious self-hate in his words.
I'll edit the title
I think if you're going to call someone else out on their "come out" you have to tell when you came out as well. Like maybe the basketball player came out to his parents a long time ago -- which, in my opinion, is more important than coming out in the workplace. As long as your family and friends know the deal, who really cares if everyone else does?
Fuck this guy.
You always do...
its one thing to be politically correct and another to be politically ethical
Which one is this writer being?
"oh, its cool, hes gay"
The title of the thread colored my perception as I read the piece then I was surprised at the end when he claimed to be an "out sportswriter". Plaese to tell me, is this piece or the opinions offered therein homophobic? I didn't find it such.
I don't think any of those people actually read the piece... or had any idea what it was that he was actually saying.
This is a tad dismissive.
More than a tad, and intentionally so.
If you were initially condemnatory of the piece, but then changed your mind upon learning that dude was gay you either: a) didn't read it, or b) struggle with reading comprehension... as it includes the divulgence that "I've been an out sportswriter for years now."
Well, I thought that there were some strongly phrased but valid thoughts in there before and after I got to that part. Sorry, focusing on different issues. Has anyone actually offered their opinion on the *article* yet? We've definitely covered the author. Um, no ayo?
That poptart Shavlik Randolph said, "As long as you don't bring your gayness on me, I'm fine."
"Bring it on me"--does dude think it's contagious?
Steven Hunter's quote was great:
"For real? He's gay for real? Nowadays it's proven that people can live double lives. I watch a lot of TV, so I see a lot of sick perverted stuff about married men running around with gay guys and all types of foolishness."
You watch a lot of TV, huh?
i agree with the author that it would further the gay movement, so to speak, if a pro athlete would finally come out during his or her career. however...easy for him to say. every contact sport has its gay moments. if Amaechi came out during his career, i can only imagine the reaction he would get after sticking his ass out and trying to box out...or worse, being on the other end of that. basketball, in particular, has a lot more mental elements than physical. being an out-of-the-closet homosexual would be a huge handicap.
i think the better point made by the author is "who cares?". the guy is not an nba player anymore, so why is this even a news story. he definitely got more press in the past few days than he did his entire career. more nba stiffs should start coming out to get some press. "Fennis Dumbo announces he is gay".
Fennis Dembo living with Granville Waiters! Film at 11.
Seriously, though, if the opposition is really thinking about dude's gayness when he is boxing out, then that is their problem. Hell, that gives the gay dude an advantage. Between the whistles, any athelete worth his salt should be able to put that stuff out of mind and play the game. At that level there is no excuse not to.
I wasn't dismissing the article--I was dismissing the comments of the people who clearly hadn't read it and yet were getting ass-hurt over it.
I agree with a lot of what he says, and I think ESPN is benefitting from this a lot more than gay people inside or outside of the NBA. When someone who is not only still within the league but is a major figure there comes out, and really forces people to deal with his sexual identity, it will be newsworthy. This is just ehh... fake media event courtesy of ESPN and dude's agent.
ESPN is real good at creating stories, you're right about that.
I was telling my wife about this story last night and her immediate reaction was basically "When someone comes out who is still playing, THEN it will be a story." She seems to know best.
- the nba is predominately black
- there are more homosexual gay black men, on a percentage basis, than any other race or ethnicity
- i play with one at my gym
Can you imagine if Yao Ming was gay? As long as he stayed off the IR, he would be unstopable.
::fruitypicksfordays::
Dude. I don't even know where to begin, but I'll start with:
"He plays pretty well, you know, for a fruitcake!"