Pictured The late Dr. Tom Waddell wth daughter Jessica at Gay Games II. Jessica is now 22 years old and works for Gay Games VII.
___________________
After a seven-year journey, Gay Games VII arrives in Chicago this weekend with a big bang—Opening Ceremony at Soldier Field Saturday night, July 15. But athletes, performers and spectators began arriving early this week to begin practice, to attend kick-off events, and enjoy the cultural offerings of Chicago.
With thousands of volunteers, staff and board members working together, the Gay Games will showcase Chicago to the world. But more importantly, it will have a life-long impact on many of those participating. Like an eight-day-long March on Washington, the Gay Games also empowers people in ways unrelated to running a sprint, sliding into home plate, or kicking a game-winning goal.
The Gay Games are, simply, not just about sports and culture. If this was just about a tournament, I know that I would not have spent the past seven years working so hard to be a part of the board of directors, travelling around the world promoting the 7th quadrennial Gay Games.
When Dr. Tom Waddell conceived of a Gay Games in the early 1980s, it was because of homophobia and stereotypes in sports. Both gay men and lesbians faced discrimination at the amateur and elite levels of sports. And yet still today, despite all of the progress of the past 25 years, gays and lesbians are not able to come out in major sports without risking endorsements and their careers. Sheryl Swoopes stands nearly alone as an athlete coming out at the top of her game, not after retiring. And it is still news.
Why sports? Because sports has a funny way of influencing society at large. In the United States, sports has a disproportionate influence on our youth and our adults. People see athletes as role models, and when athletes break barriers, their efforts help move us forward as a country. Think of Jesse Owens, Jackie Robinson, Althea Gibson, Arthur Asch, Billie Jean King, Martina Navratilova, Greg Louganis, Rudy Galindo, Dave Kopay, Esera Tuaolo, Billy Bean ... and the list goes on.
Sports, through the high school, collegiate, and elite levels, also has a way of mirroring the struggles of society, including through the courts. Major lawsuits have been won by those seeking equal access to sports, based on gender, and now even based on HIV status and sexuality. Just by trying to be a gymnast for Cirque de Soleil, Matthew Cusick helped break down barriers. B. Birgit Koebke and Kendall French are fighting for their right to be treated as partners, just like heterosexual couples, at a California golf club. Coaches and players across the college landscape are fighting to be able to be out and still stay in their positions and on their teams.
So sports is not just about who wins or loses, but about who even gets a chance to play the game.
The Gay Games also understands that not everyone can travel the world to play. Funds have been raised, in large part thanks to Chicagoans Dick Uyvari and Joe La Pat, to bring more than 100 scholarship athletes from countries such as Croatia and South Africa to the Gay Games. Some of these athletes risk their lives simply by applying for a scholarship, and some could not get into the U.S. because of difficult visa restrictions. It is not so easy just to play a game.
There are many critical issues our community works on each day: AIDS, hate crimes, marriage rights, employment rights, etc. The Gay Games would seem a lighter respite from these issues. But what they can do is create new activists, they can reinvigorate long-time fighters, and they can show the world we truly are diverse, international, and not monolithic.
______
My nephew was two years old in 1999, when we first started this journey of hosting the 2006 Gay Games. He's now nine years old. It feels like the blink of an eye, and a lifetime ... but our group of core people who have been with this for seven years have no regrets. While something this big could never be perfect, Chicago has spared no effort to deliver the best of everything this region has to offer.
At the end of the Gay Games, we will have amassed more than 360 sponsors, thousands of new volunteers, and fresh donors to our movement. These can be transitioned to existing gay and AIDS organizations, to revitalize our movement just as the Marches on Washington were able to do.
______
How to enjoy the Gay Games this week? Come down to the Hilton, 720 S. Michigan Avenue, Friday through Monday to get comprehensive Souvenir, Culture and Sports guides, visit the Gay Games Expo businesses, and get a complete understanding of the 200+ sports and culture events this coming week.
Events start Thursday night with gallery and theater openings, and run through Sunday, July 23 with one of many closing parties at House of Blues, with members of the cast of The L Word, BETTY, and more.
Windy City Times has a calendar in this issue, plus downloadable PDFs at our Web site, www.windycitymediagroup.com, as does the gaygameschicago.org Web site.
I would suggest you plan out the week ahead of time so you can enjoy ceremonies, sports and culture throughout the time. Most sports are fere to watch, and the ticketed sports sell out soon. You can purchase event tickets at HOT TIX locations, or at the Hilton Friday and Saturday.
The biggest event of the week is this Saturday at Soldier Field, the Opening Ceremony, with dozens of performers and special guests. the second biggest event will be the Closing Ceremony at Wrigley Field July 22, with a handoff to Gay Games VIII host, Cologne, Germany, for 2010.
The Gay Games guidelines are based on Participation, Inclusion and Personal Best. We have done our best as an organization to follow these principles. Thank you to everyone who has helped create the most successful gay Games to date—and create a lasting legacy to the world.