PRIDELETS GAY SPORTS DAY Who's gay in the world of pro sports? On this day in 1993, the "New
York Daily News" asks the openly gay athletes those who'd know.
Ex-Dodgers and A's outfielder Glenn Burke says he knows for a fact there
are 10. Good ones, too" in the major-league who are either still playing
or recently retired. (Fired gay umpire Dave Pallone can name at least
three.)
Brian Pronger, author of "The Arena of Masculinity, Sports,
Homosexuality and the Meaning of Sex" knows "at least" five high-profile
pro hockey players.
Former Washington Redskin David Kopay says that from the 1969-1970
roster of his team at least four other players were gay and/or bi,
(including the late Jerry Smith, and general manager Dave Slattery).
"Frontiers" magazine knows of "a professional baseball batting
champion, several pre-eminent Olympic gold medalists, and a Super Bowl
MVP" staying comfortably in the closet.
Who's willing to be out? A daring dozen: the aforementioned Burke,
Kopay, Pallone and Smith Slattery, Martina Navratilova, European soccer
player Justin Fashanu, ex-New York Giants offensive tackle Roy Simmons,
University of Pittsburgh offensive lineman Ed Gallagher, 1984 U.S.
Olympic swimmer Bruce Hayes, body builder Bob Jackson-Paris, and 1968
U.S. Olympic decathlete Tom Waddell.
When Daily News asks several "prominent sports figures strongly
believed to be gay or bisexual" for the article offering the chance to
provide an anonymous account of why they don't come out ... none accept
the offer since all maintain that they're straight.
BIRTHGAYS (and the occasional straights)
* 1532 - Poet Seigneur de Limodin AKA Etienne Jodelle
* 1915 - Lyricist and composer George "Chet" Forrest
* 1932 - Pioneering gay rights activist Barbara Gittings
* 1944 - Poet and author Richard Rodriguez
* 1944 - Irish activist / politician David Norris
* 1965 - Rugby star Ian Roberts
Q.UOTE
"He's one of the toughest kids we ever had in the program. He's one of our hardest hitters. I think he's dispelled a lot of misconceptions. Let him have a clean shot at you, then see what you think." -Masconomet High School (MA) head coach Jim Pugh on the coming out of Corey Johnson, pictured, the team's captain. Johnson came out to his team at 16.
THE BEDSIDE TABLE
In The Game: Gay Athletes And The Cult Of Masculinity, by Eric Anderson
Using interviews with openly gay and closeted team-sport athletes,
Eric Anderson examines how homophobia is reproduced in sport, how gay
male athletes navigate this, and how American masculinity is changing.
By detailing individual experiences, Anderson shows how these athletes
are emerging from their athletic closets and contesting the dominant
norms of masculinity. From the locker rooms of high school sports, where
the atmosphere of "don't ask, don't tell" often exists, to the unique
circumstances that gay athletes encounter in professional team sports,
this book analyzes the agency that openly gay athletes possess to change
their environments.
