Mon 8 Apr 2013 In: Hall of Fame View at Wayback View at NDHA
With the news four NFL players could, maybe, be about to make history by all coming out on the same day, we honour some of the straight sportsmen who are standing up for their gay brothers, and making their paths easier. American football: Brendon Ayanbadejo, Chris Kluwe and Michael Irvin Since 2009, NFL linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo has fought for marriage equality. When a Maryland State Delegate wrote to the owner of his then team, the Baltimore Ravens in 2012 demanding the team "take the necessary action ... to inhibit such expressions from your employee,” Ayanbedejo publicly announced that, as the son of interracial parents whose own marriage would have been illegal in 16 states prior to 1967, he had no intention of remaining silent on an issue of conscience and public importance. His action led to Minnesota Vikings punter Chris Kluwe publicly supporting him, and the pair have continued to speak out for GLBT rights and gay players since. Former Dallas Cowboy and NFL Hall of Famer Michael Irvin spoke about the death of his gay brother in an Out magazine cover story. He spoke out for GLBT rights and said he would support any athlete in the NFL, NBA, NHL or MLB (major American leagues) who comes out. Rugby: David Pocock, Ben Cohen, Adam Thomson and Eliota Fuimaono-Sapolu He’s a Wallaby, and we love him. That’s because barnstorming flanker David Pocock has made it quite clear on numerous occasions how strongly he feels about GLBT rights. "Being brought up in a Christian home and still identifying as Christian, I get pretty annoyed with the Christian lobbies around the world who say gay marriage destroys the family and all that kind of rubbish," he told the NZ Herald. "They claim to follow someone who always stood up for the oppressed and marginalised. "I guess it is a fear of the unknown - if you talk to someone who doesn't like gay people you can almost guarantee that they don't know too many. "These are the prejudices that you have to challenge and break down," he finishes, before explaining that he and his partner Emma decided not to get legally married until their gay friends can do the same. Former England player Ben Cohen is a straight gay icon, who founded The Ben Cohen StandUp Foundation to combat homophobia and bullying. Now he is retired he travels the world and shares his pro-equality, anti-bigotry message. "There is a lot of work to be done," he said. "Attitudes need to change. Young people should not be bullied into taking their own lives. That is what is happening and it needs to stop". Former All Black Adam Thomson is, depressingly, the only New Zealander to make the list. He broke down a massive barrier when he openly expressed support for marriage equality. He tweeted: “Full support to @tamati_coffey for marriage equality … This country should be leading the way on civil rights, echoing the deeds of our past.” He later added: “It’s a no brainer for me, should have happened years ago! #MarriageEquality” We wish he’d have spoken more about his thoughts when we requested a chat, but hey, it’s still a big step. Manu Samoa representative Eliota Fuimaono-Sapolu broke ground when he threw his support behind marriage equality, saying he didn’t understand why Polynesians are against it. “There was a time when the first missionaries refused to marry Polynesians until they accepted the colonial image of god, as we, Polynesians, were heathen, pagan, savages,” he said in a Facebook posting, which had a huge response. “It’s funny now we’ve become the missionary calling others what we were called. Our thinking has now become that of the colonisers.” Cricket: James Anderson While he may help the English team decimate the Black Caps all too often, we have a soft spot for pace bowler Jimmy Anderson. He was the first cricketer to model naked for Attitude, Britain's biggest-selling gay magazine, in September 2010. He stated "If there are any gay cricketers they should feel confident enough to come out because I don't think there is any homophobia in cricket." We hope he’s right – especially considering some of the views and laws in the likes of the West Indies, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Basketball: Magic Johnson, Charles Barkley and Kenneth Faried Magic Johnson’s son Earvin “EJ” Johnson III is openly-gay, and his dad has said he and wife Cookie love and support EJ in every way. "We're very proud of him." When Magic revealed he was HIV-positive in 1991, rumours about his sexuality arose. Instead of dodging the speculation, he used his celebrity to spread awareness and tolerance. He has also spoken out against Proposition 8, which banned same-sex marriage in California. During an interview on SiriusXM radio, another former NBA star Charles Barkley was asked how he felt about gay players in the locker room. Barkley responded that a gay player would only be judged based on: “whether he can play or not. If somebody is gay, that's their own business. But it bothers me how people try to say that jocks are not going to like a gay ... I think gay people should be allowed to get married and God bless them, that's their own business. Listen, if a guy can't play that's the only time we don't want to play with him. We don't care about all that extracurricular stuff.” Current NBA player Kenneth Faried, of the Denver Nuggets, has two mums. He spoke out about his support of marriage equality and his mothers. “A lot of people [are] saying civil union,” Faried told KDVR. “I don’t like it being called that because I can get married to a female and it can be called a marriage. Why can’t a female be married to a female and male be married to a male and it be called a marriage? You still have the same thing, same love and happiness.” Mentions also to Steve Nash and Manu Ginobili. AFL: Brock McLean and Daniel Jackson Carlton player Brock McLean and Richmond's Daniel Jackson joined gay amateur footballer Jason Ball at a Melbourne pride march this year. The event was especially significant for McLean, whose sister recently came out. “People need to be able to be proud of who they are and if, by marching, people who are gay feel a bit more supported by us as individuals and footballers as a whole then that's a good achievement,'' Jackson, who is an ambassador for youth mental health foundation headspace, told The Age. ''I was shocked to learn through my involvement with headspace about the high suicide rates the gay and lesbian community face and I find it unbelievable that young people feel so persecuted for being who they are that it would drive them to commit suicide.'' Overall the AFL gets a massive high five for its awesome No To Homophobia campaign. And its short shorts, of course. Boxing: Sergio Martinez Argentinian boxer Sergio Martinez made a video for the “It Gets Better Project”. The 37-year-old Martinez was bullied himself growing up and helps others who have been the victims of bullying. Football: Cristiano Ronaldo and Hulk (The one on the left is Hulk, on the right is Ronaldo doing a great impression of Hulk) After marriage equality was introduced in Portugal, its famous son Cristiano Ronaldo said, “We must respect the choices made by anyone, because, after all, all citizens should have the exact same rights and responsibilities.” When a group of fans of the Russian club Zenit issued an open letter saying they would not accept non-Slavic or gay players at the club, Brazilian player Hulk responded: “I think that these people, these fans, do not take other cultures into account … Me, I respect all players, whatever the colour of their skin or sexual preferences. “These fans who insult non-white or gay players do not reflect the majority, it is as simple as that.” Are you gonna mess with Hulk? The scorecard: It seems major strides are being made in the American major leagues, and even in the AFL across the Tasman. But where are the rugby league players standing up for GLBT rights? And where are the New Zealand sportsmen? We still have a long way to go before professional sport is a safe place for gay players to come out. Did we miss anyone? Email jacqui@gaynz.com GayNZ.com staff - 8th April 2013