When you think about the strides that the gay community has made since Stonewall, it's pretty amazing. There are openly gay individuals in just about every facet of professional life, ranging from entertainment to politics.
However, the American sports arena ( literally and figuratively ) has been devoid of out people. Why? Some would cite the perception that a sports field is the last bastion of the macho, and homosexuality is viewed by many as a weakness. Others mention the insecurity and discomfort that fans and other athletes alike would feel around gay players. Whatever the reason is, the sad fact is that openly gay male professional athletes are non-existent ( for now ) . [ WNBA NY Liberty basketball player Sue Wicks recently came out as a lesbian, and women's tennis and golf have had various out athletes. ]
I recently sat down with Chicago Sun-Times sports columnist Rick Telander, who wrote an article about sports and homosexuality. He's also the author of several books, including the classic Heaven is a Playground and his latest, String Music. A candid subject, Telander gave me views of everything from the Gay Games to Mike Piazza, a pro baseball player who held a press conference to declare his heterosexuality.
Andrew Davis: Let me start with a Billy Bean quote: "It would be professional suicide for an athlete to come out of the closet while still playing." Do you agree? [ Bean was a pro baseball player who came out after retiring from the sport. ]
Rick Telander: To a degree, yes...but I think with every day that goes by, we get closer to that moment [ when a player will come out while active in pro sports ] . It's very easy for someone to be brave with someone else's life.
There was a gay sportswriters' convention here about four or five years ago. Everyone agreed that [ coming out ] would truly change the landscape about how gays are perceived. It would be so traumatic, however, that it would take somebody [ who's ] secure and prepared for the onslaught of criticism since baseball fans, particularly, will always hurl the lowest insult at you.
AD: Do you think that it will also take someone who's very successful?
RT: Yes. It can't be a marginal player. It can't be a bench player. [ Bench players ] are more susceptible. When you're a professional athlete, you're fighting for your life and for your job. You don't need any interference at all and if you're a marginal guy there's nobody who can't do without you. They might say the guy is too much of a distraction and ask him to take a hike: "If you want to go to the minor leagues and be out, go ahead. Don't bring this crap around here now. We're trying to win a pennant." So someone's who established and who has his props, so to speak, as an athlete and as a guy...
AD: Do you think this applies to every sport?
RT: Well, guys are virtually out in, say, ice skating.
AD: Yes. It seems that figure skating is the one sport where people are not surprised when athletes come out.
RT: Yeah...it's one of the toughest sports there is, but people assume that many of the prime dancers [ are ] gay. Certainly, it's tougher with football, basketball and baseball. It might be easier to be a gay tennis player [ because it's an individual activity ] .
There's been a history of some grievous insults in boxing to someone who may or may not have been gay. In fact, I'm sure there have been gay boxers.
AD: Well, I remember rumors going around about [ boxer ] Lennox Lewis, for example.
RT: There are always rumors going around. I remember rumors going around about Mike Tyson. If Lennox Lewis came out after being labeled the toughest man on earth, would that change people's perspectives? I think so. If I were him and I were gay, would I come out? You know...again, it's very easy to be brave with someone else's life.
It's different with football, basketball and baseball. These are big American sports. These are team sports, where you not only have to get the approval of the fans but you also have to get the approval of more than one coach, all of your teammates and, in a certain sense, the approval and respect of your opponent, which is critical.
You just don't know how people think. I'm always amazed to see how liberal certain people are and how close-minded others can be. You might think that your best friend knows everything about you; if you tell him you're gay, he might back away like I put a cobra in front of him. [ In contrast, ] my daughter told me about someone at her high school who told his teammate that he's gay and the guy was like "Yeah, I know"...and that was the end of it.
People come at you from all directions; it'll take someone with credentials to handle things because critics will focus on your flaws and say that they're mandated by the fact that you're homosexual.
AD: I was looking at ESPN.com and saw some readers' comments about this very issue. One fan wrote "There's no place in sports for gay athletes. I will openly boo any athlete who acknowledges being gay. Even if that athlete was one of my favorite players, he would turn into an enemy."
RT: You know where that comes from? I know; it comes from implying so much more to being gay than is actually there. It implies that we need to "blanket-judge" people because that's how we get through life. So, if you haven't had much contact and all you can think is "OK, there was a gay murderer so all gays are murderers," that's the same kind of [ conclusion ] like all Muslims are terrorists, which is an easy thing to get to...and we've gotten there. That [ letter writer ] probably doesn't realize that they know gay people, whether a cousin or teacher or someone else. They may not know it, and if they did and it still bothers them, there may be some other issue they're dealing with ( like the idea of not being manly ) . For example, kids pick on each other by saying things like " [ y ] ou throw like a girl"...and it stops everything dead. [ Speaking of which, ] women have come out a lot more than men...
AD: Yes...and teams like the [ WNBA's ] L.A. Sparks have even marketed specifically to the lesbian community. So it seems like it's easier for women to come out in professional sports.
RT: I think it might be easier because men have to deal with the manhood issue and what it means to be a man. If someone came out as gay, I would say to my son that I could look at who they are as a person and say that this person is a warrior and that this person is worthy of your respect. But, then again, I did live in Key West for four years so I might be different from other people. ( Laughs ) My family didn't have any prejudices. Growing up in Peoria, we didn't have to deal with those big issues in the big cities. Things like ethnicity and religion were irrelevant. However, I'm not going to set myself up as a paragon of virtue because I have my moments.
AD: So you would have no problem if your son wore a jersey that had the name of an openly gay athlete on it?
RT: I would not. By extension, he would have to be very secure doing it; I wouldn't make him do it. I think it would be cool. But that would be the true "trickle down" effect. For instance, is Mike Piazza gay? I don't know. He says he's not...
AD: I was going to ask you about him.
RT: You know...that New York thing? Who can tell? He says he's not, so I'm just going to let that go.
AD: Do you think Piazza was justified in holding a press conference just to say he's not gay?
RT: Well, it's awful to be smeared by innuendo. If a guy's going to say it in a gossip column, then go out and say it: "Mike Piazza's gay." In New York, there must have been a swirl of things going on and with all the scrutiny you're under there...with every person, it's [ his ] choice to come out. I don't like people being outed. I don't think that's particularly fair or noble. There might be justification with, say, a lawmaker who's making very repressive laws against gays. But with an athlete or a star where it's irrelevant? I don't think so. If Mike Piazza wants to come out, then he should do it. If he's lying, however, then I feel sorry for him because every gay person I know who's come out feels a sense of relief because they don't have to live a double life. I have compassion for anyone who has to live that type of life; I wouldn't want to do it.
Like I said, I have a buddy who's a gay sports journalist. His readers may know, but it doesn't matter to me; he's a great guy. If he were a jerk I'd say he was a jerk...not a homosexual jerk.
AD: Have you heard of the Gay Games?
RT: Oh, yeah. Sure. It's like the Olympic Games.
AD: What do you think about gays having their own separate sports event?
RT: I think it's OK. It's curious because you can't be prejudicial towards those who aren't. What are you going to say...that you're not gay enough so you can't compete? As long as they don't exclude heterosexuals, I think it's OK. I think that as a rallying point, it's fine. So many oppressed minorities have rallies and if they make you feel better about yourself, I think that's fine.
AD: Like if they had the Black Games ...
RT: That WOULD be the Olympics! ( Laughs )
AD: Or the NBA... ( Laughs )
RT: If it were needed, that's fine. What about gay rodeos and Black rodeos?
AD: Which they do have ...
RT: They're all OK as long as they don't become exclusionary. I'm in favor of Title IX and sports for both sexes but I'm not in favor of girls playing on boys' teams. If it happens, then girls should be prepared for boys playing on girls' teams.
AD: That's fine as long as there aren't sports teams for each.
RT: Right. I mean that's why we have men's and women's johns...hello!?! The day we have unisex bathrooms...
AD: We do already, Rick.
RT: This sounds like back in my Key West days. ( Laughs )
AD: I'll have to hear about those Key West adventures sometime. Now, I want to move on to one of your quotes from your article: "I know lots of people who don't know that I know that they're gay. I know a sportswriter who is gay. I am married and have four children, but how do you know I am not gay myself? Maybe I am. Think about that." Now, why did you write that and have you caught any flak?
RT: You know what's funny? I haven't gotten any flak at all! The only [ feedback ] I got was from a buddy of mine who asked me why I felt compelled to put that I'm married with four children. I thought that was a good point; maybe if I had balls I wouldn't have even put that in there. I'm very impressed that I didn't hear from all these guys who normally call me on the phone. I was shocked. I mean I'm listed in the phone book! I did hear from people who told me that those were the best four paragraphs I'd ever written in my years as a sportswriter.
AD: What are your thoughts about various athletes who have uttered homophobic remarks? I'm thinking about people like [ baseball player ] John Rocker, Julian Tavares [ of the Cubs ] , [ NBA player ] Allen Iverson and [ tennis player ] Goran Ivanisevic.
RT: Well, you have to consider the source. It's a very knee-jerk thing...and what's more macho than gangsta rap? [ Note: Iverson has recorded a gangsta rap CD that is peppered with anti-gay slurs. ] It's almost as if Iverson felt compelled to put [ homophobic lyrics ] on the CD. That's kind of like the uniform of the rap world.
AD: It's definitely tougher in the Black community. If a Black pro athlete came out...wow!
RT: Yeah, and it turns out to be more self-destructive. I think self-esteem has a lot to do with it. It's also tough in the Latino community because they have strict Old World codes about girls and boys.
AD: Without naming names, have you had the chance to talk to any [ closeted active ] athletes and get their feedback about the issue?
RT: No, I haven't. There was a guy who wrote a book called Jocks ( about gays and sports ) and it's all anecdotal stuff. It wasn't really that good. The problem is the only guys [ who'll talk ] are retired.
AD: In the May issue of OUT magazine, editor-in-chief Brendan Lemon talked about his affair with a pro baseball player...
RT: Yeah, I talked to him. When he first came up with it, I asked him if he thought it was fair to do this semi-outing and he said: "I'm not outing. You don't know who it is." So I'll just accept it that I don't know. When it comes to professional athletes, I just don't know. I'll just assume that [ the percentage of gay pros ] is similar to the population at large. I'm not buying that it's 10 percent, but it's some figure.
AD: I see something happening within the next few years.
RT: That'd be something. You know what may happen? People will spend so much time getting ready that when it does happen, they'll react like that guy who heard from my daughter's friend that he was gay.
