Homosexuality and Sports: A Look at History and the Long Road Ahead

Throughout the past decade or two, homosexuality has made its way into political and social discourse. Many people from the homosexual community have taken a stand and have called for changes because of the way in which they have been treated. Sometimes it has been successful, and other times not. Obviously there could be more progress and change for the better, but acceptance of homosexuality has made good strides and it's not as taboo to talk about gays and lesbians as it once was. However in the sports arena it's a different ballgame. When it comes to homosexual acceptance in professional or college sports, athletics are in the Stone Age!

It is believed that 10 percent of the general population is homosexual, if that were the case around 325 to 400 male athletes in professional sports alone are homosexual. Those numbers can be startling since there has never been a single professional athlete here in the U.S. that has come out while still playing their sport. For the most part professional athletes wait to come out until their career is over if at all, because of the fear of being ostracized and other repercussions that may occur, which I'll speak more about. Some high profile athletes to make headway were David Kopay, NFL running back, the first professional sports team athlete to come out, three years out of retirement. Greg Louganis, Olympic diver winner of four gold medals, came out in 1988 after hitting his head on the diving board and sharing to the nation he had AIDS. Bob Paris, Mr. Olympic and Mr. America in professional bodybuilding came out in 1989 on the Oprah Winfrey show, and recently Esera Tuaolo, professional defensive lineman in the NFL, came out in October 2004 on HBO's "Real Sports." (Jet, BC Magazine) Even though these men have been inspirational in the homosexual community they still had to deal with hardships from society that comes with being homosexual. In the article "H-The Scarlet Letter of Sports," Pat Griffin states, "historically sports has been the domain of men. It's been a training ground where boys learn about being men and being manly." If willing to come out while playing their particular sport homosexual athletes would have to deal with being ostracized by teammates, subjected to violence, lose endorsements, and perhaps being kicked off the team. I know that homosexuals who don't have to play sports have to deal with some of these obstacles also, but in general the public is more accepting. Sports on the other hand are not, and these athletes have to deal with these issues in a more profound and in your face manner.

Nobody wants to feel left out especially in a sports setting, you want that team camaraderie, and for a homosexual to come out to their teammates would defiantly destroy that. All you have to do is go into a locker room for one day to find that out. The locker room is a hypermasculine haven, having been in many, I know this for certain. As Eric Anderson states, "Athletics is a breeding ground for homophobia," (Hawes 3) and on top of that Michael S. Muska adds, "Athletics has been that last bastion of homophobia. It's one of the few places left where homophobia is tolerated." (Hawes 2.) Because of this homophobic behavior and acceptance, homosexual athletes have to stay silent about their sexuality and pretend to be heterosexual to preserve their good name. On HBO's "Real Sports" I remember watching Esera Tuaolo and hearing him say how he'd have to go along with the joke when teammates would joke around about homosexuals, and also how on road trips he would act the part of the typical heterosexual stud athlete by picking up on females to prove his masculinity to teammates. I remember when I played football at Snow College there were occurrences where homophobia hit you right in the face. What happened was one of the wide receivers on our team was laid out by a defensive back that was smaller then he, the very next play the receiver ran away from hitting that same defensive back. Our couch jumped all over him saying, "what is this queer football, get the fuck off my field if you don't want to hit!" The reason I remember it so much is because his masculinity was questioned, and no male athlete wants his masculinity to be in question, and because of that statement he played more aggressively. Reggie White one of the best defensive ends ever to play football had these remarks about homosexuals in 1998. "They're malicious and backstabbing," equated them with "liars" and "cheaters," then went on to blame homosexuality for the decline of Western civilization. (Boykin 5) After hearing these types of homophobic comments it's no wonder why homosexuals keep quite about their sexuality in fear of being ostracized. In a study conducted by Sports Illustrated in April of 2005 the question surveyed was, "is it okay for gay athletes to participate in sports, even if they are open about their sexuality?" 78% of the people polled agreed its okay. On the other hand they were asked again "would it hurt an athlete's career to be openly gay?" 68% said it would hurt they're career.(SI Magazine, Apr 2005) That study shows that in the world outside of sports homosexuality in more accepted. In careers other than athletics if somebody were to know that you were gay and proceeded to give you a hard time, chanced are they'd be fired because of laws that have been put in place to protect individuals. In athletics this isn't so, having seen first hand, the sports arena is an area of crude language, and if a homosexual athlete were to challenge this his safety would be in danger.

Safety is another category that the homosexual athlete knows is an area for concern if they were to come out while playing their sport. Esera Tuaolo stated in his interview with "HBO Sports" that he knew if he were to come out while still playing in the NFL players on his own team during practice would try to take him out. Sterling Sharpe, NFL wide receiver who played with Esera on the Green Bay Packers stated in the same interview that Esera would have been a target and that the team wouldn't tolerated playing with a homosexual. When asked why this was Shape commented that if caught being around a homosexual and accepting of a homosexual's sexual orientation, other people might question his orientation as well. To even be suggested that you might be gay strikes fear into the heterosexual athlete and that's where you get the violent reaction. An example would be former San Francisco 49ers running back Garrison Hearst who's comment reiterates this fear, "I don't want any faggot on my team" (Buzinski, Sports: Gay Male) In the same article Tim Hardaway a former NBA player, was asked what he thought about John Amaechi (former NBA player) coming out. Hardaway replied "You know I hate gay people, so I let it be known. I don't like gay people and I don't like to be around gay people." (Buzinski, Sports: Gay Male) Even Magic Johnson, NBA superstar had to fight against the notion that he might be homosexual, after contracting the HIV virus. In an interview with Arsenio Hall, in 1991 he said, "I'm far from being homosexual. You know that, everybody else who's close to me understands that." Randi Boyd was disappointed by his response, he states in response to Magic, "it's okay that you have AIDS, it's okay that you've slept with thousands of women, just as long as you're not gay." (Boykin, 4) NFL agent Leigh Steinberg further illustrates the safety factor for athletes to come out, when saying, "Look, I think it would be much easier, in many senses, to be convicted of robbery and serve time, then come play in major-league baseball or the NFL, than be gay." (ESPN.com Jan, 1999) Cris Carter takes the cake though; he sums it all up with his homophobic comment, and the violence that the homosexual player would have to face, stating, "I think it would be tough for a lot of the athletes that I play with to think that, 'Wow, I am showering, I am performing on the field, I am bleeding, I am fighting with a person that is a homosexual,'" Carter Says. "I know there would be people definitely taking shots at him. I feel very confident that that would happen." (ESPN.com Jan, 1999) After hearing these comments who would want to come out and still be involved in athletics at the same time.

We all know athletes make great money, but income also come in from endorsements and areas of marketing. For an athlete to come out while still playing would have a backlash effect. Steinberg says, "I think it would have a devastating effect in terms of the marketability of any athlete to come out and talk about gayness," he continues. "The whole concept of endorsements is an attempt by a company to appeal to the broadest possible audience. The thought that a company would want to step into the middle of that controversy, especially with the very heavy fundamentalist Christians who are making this a public issue, is just not there." (ESPN.com Jan, 1999) San Francisco's Steve Young and Dallas' Troy Aikman were two of the best quarterbacks in the 1990's and because of them not being married in their 30s questions about their sexuality surfaced. "There is a certain level of expectation about any unmarried man in this society that goes into their late 20s and 30s and doesn't get married." (ESPN.com Jan, 1999) Both eventually got married, but even the thought of their sexuality made headlines. David Kopay lost the chance to become of coach in college football because of his homosexuality, "I tried some contacts at San Francisco State, and they said, 'Don't even try. Forget it.' And this was in San Francisco in 1977." Even though it's getting better for homosexuals in the work atmosphere, the sports arena still hasn't become as accepting because of the money that's at stake. Sports for the most part is a heterosexual masculine world, and for this reason homosexuality has a very difficult time finding its way in.

Employment, as seen with David Kopay can affect you if you're a homosexual. In college sports it has an impact as well, specifically in women's sports. Laurie Priest, an openly gay athletic director at Mount Holyoke College, states that in jobs interviews you get asked if you're married to found out your sexual orientation. She says, "I've heard male Ads ask, 'What does she look like?' "And what they are asking is, 'Does she look like a lesbian?' Assumptions are made all the time. It's very intimidating to all women." (Outsports.com, NCAA Begins to Discuss Homosexuality, pg 5) Coaches use homosexuality as a tool to lure recruits away as well, saying, "No, we don't allow any lesbians on our teams here at State." Or, "You don't want to go play on that team. It's full of dykes." Student athletes have reported some coaches telling student-athletes that "no gays are allowed" on their teams, and also being told not to go to certain schools because of the "number of lesbians" there. It's no wonder that homosexuals don't want to come out in athletics. To be out can effect whether you get employment, or able to go to a certain school, or if found out to be gay you could lose your job. Once again, sports are in the dark ages when it comes to acceptance of homosexuals.

In conclusion, it's evident to see that athletics and homosexuality has a very long way to go. I believe that everybody, no matter what race, nationality, religion, or sexuality you identify with should be treated with equality and respect. Having said that I honestly don't know if that will ever be the case in regard to homosexuality and sports. I'd like to believe it's possible and so does David Kopay. He believes in order for it to happen it has to be a star athlete, I agree, it'd have to be a Michael Jordan type or a Tom Brady to really challenge the ideology of homosexuals and sport. If the player was a no-name, and made minimum-salary, Kopay says, "You would be gone." Again reaffirming your employment would be in jeopardy in coming out as a homosexual. He goes on to say, "I do think it's going to happen before I leave this planet. I think within another generation, another 20 years, it's going to happen." (ESPN.com Jan 1999) To add to that Randy Boyd states, "It's gonna take a Jackie Robinson with a couple of angels on his side who will say, yeah we're with you," said Boyd. "It's gonna take men with courage." (Boykin, 5) As I've said throughout this paper, it isn't quite the same for homosexual athletes in their field of work as it is for homosexuals in other fields of occupation. Although I know homosexuals all over deal with these circumstances but when it comes to sports it's heightened to another level.