So if you have a pulse, I’m sure you have heard the recent news
about Jason Collins, the center for the Washington Wizards, has publicly
announced that he is gay. For those of you who are comfortably living under a
rock, this is a huge deal. As the first active player from a major American
team sport, Collins will be a trailblazer for future athletes to more openly
express their lifestyles, or will he? I personally have a lot of respect for
the man, who is risking his career and his reputation with a single statement,
to boldly embrace the lifestyle he has chosen. My main interest on this story
is what will happen next? While the actual answer is to be determined there
could be major positive or negative repercussions that stem from this. Fan and
teammate feedback are going to be huge factors as it relates to seeing if other
players will follow suit and come out of the closet. It is my sincere hope that the courage of
Collins will give any other professional sports players the courage to follow
in his footsteps. If you have ever played a sport, whether it was in high
school or college, I’m sure that you have some reaction to this major
development in the professional sports world. If you want to post what you
think just comment below and hopefully we can get a meaningful discussion out
of this new development to the big picture of gay rights in the United States.
All I can say is good for him. He definitely will be a figure that will be recognized for sometime for being the man who tore down the walls of oppression in the sports world. My concern though: lots of people will sit around and ask who is Jason Collins. Lets be honest for a second. The guy is 34 year old center, closing in on the end of his career. He's been the last guy off the bench for most of his career and he's never really made a name for himself in the NBA. The first remark that I heard from nearly everyone about this was, "He's still in the NBA?" Don't get me wrong, good for him, and even better for the gay community.It's a big deal, but it won't be a huge deal until we see a big name athlete, one that every casual fan recognizes, open up about their sexuality.
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