In a beautiful turn of events, Jason Collins’ decision to come out as the first homosexual active professional athlete has paved the way to look at homosexuality in professional sports from a different perspective.
Former Ravens linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo spoke on Meet The Press this weekend to express his support for marriage equality, discussing how homosexuality in professional sports is frowned upon because of the feminine stigma ingrained in it.
“People think gayness has something to do with femininity when really we just need to erase that stereotypes from out minds. LGBT people come in all different types and shapes and forms. So I think that’s really what we’re fighting. But the beautiful thing about what Britney Griner did, it barely made a splash. That’s what we’re trying to do in men’s sports when people announce they’re gay. We don’t want it to change the climate in sports. We want everybody to be accepted and people can go out there and love who they want to love and be who they are so they cannot only be better but they can also be better athletes,” said Ayanbadejo.
Ayanbadejo has consistently used his celebrity to advocate for marriage equality and encourage professional athletes to be more accepting and understanding, rather than discriminatory and homophobic.
Another win for the LBGT community and plenty more to come! We applaud Ayanbadejo for standing up for what’s right.
SOURCE: Think Progress
