Jason Collins - NBA Center, 12 years in the league, comes out

accountability said:
GSG5545 said:
accountability said:
I really dont care. I'm glad he's doing it. I wish they all would. The faster we move passed this supposed "issue"-if it can even be labeled an issue-the faster society can move on to more pressing issues in my eyes.

Dont make a difference either way.
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Well, there are still things like this: http://abcnews.go.co...ntegrated-prom/

So I'm guessing we are unfortunately a long way off from people getting past things like a gay NBA player.
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I saw that the other day and was gonna bring it here, and never got around to it.

How the hell was that even legal?

Also a little BTW, Rochelle, Georgia is Alfonzo Dennard's hometown.
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You got me. I had to re-read it a couple times to make sure it wasn't something from The Onion

 
knapplc said:
Landlord of Memorial Stadium said:
This is a breath of fresh air.
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Indeed. While I think the mood of the country has moved from "tolerance" to "acceptance" and even beyond into "meh," I guess I'm even surprised by this. It's great.
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It is great but if the average Husker fan is any sort of yardstick, there are still more than a few folks that aren't ready to offer up a 'meh'. As we have seen in more than one thread here lately, there is still some support for institutional discrimination against people who are gay.

 
Someone said:
knapplc said:
Landlord of Memorial Stadium said:
This is a breath of fresh air.
Click to expand...
Indeed. While I think the mood of the country has moved from "tolerance" to "acceptance" and even beyond into "meh," I guess I'm even surprised by this. It's great.
Click to expand...
It is great but if the average Husker fan is any sort of yardstick, there are still more than a few folks that aren't ready to offer up a 'meh'. As we have seen in more than one thread here lately, there is still some support for institutional discrimination against people who are gay.
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I was really hoping you would stay out of this thread, because it's a thread that is celebrating Jason Collins for having the courage to come out and admit he is gay as a pro athlete.

 
ADS said:
Someone said:
knapplc said:
Landlord of Memorial Stadium said:
This is a breath of fresh air.
Click to expand...
Indeed. While I think the mood of the country has moved from "tolerance" to "acceptance" and even beyond into "meh," I guess I'm even surprised by this. It's great.
Click to expand...
It is great but if the average Husker fan is any sort of yardstick, there are still more than a few folks that aren't ready to offer up a 'meh'. As we have seen in more than one thread here lately, there is still some support for institutional discrimination against people who are gay.
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I was really hoping you would stay out of this thread, because it's a thread that is celebrating Jason Collins for having the courage to come out and admit he is gay as a pro athlete.
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Really? Odd.
Here is what I read:

I put it in this forum because we have several threads about gay issues here already. Frankly I think it's getting to be less political and more... whatever (not sure what. Normal? Regular? "Not news?"), but who knows how the conversation will turn, so instead of moving it here later, I put it here to start.
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Mr. Collins has responded to the words of encouragement he received today:

@jasoncollins34

All the support I have received today is truly inspirational. I knew that I was choosing the road less traveled but I'm not walking it alone

@jasoncollins34

Thank you to everyone who has reached out to me thru email, texts, calls, tweets, letters, and every other form of communication. #support

 
I don't think there is any sentiment portrayed by the members on this board that institutional discrimination against gays (by the by, not covered by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act) is okay. There are people who theologically disagree, and that is there own standing, much like yours. But no one has portrayed it to that extreme.

But that isn't what this thread is about. It's about a gay man not hiding anymore in a world where the gay man "shouldn't", by the role of "athlete" be. Seeing all the support he has and will receive changes the public's view. That is, in itself, monumental.

 
I look forward to the day when this kind of news doesn't matter, but I understand why it matters now and I think it's important that he did this.

It doesn't change my thinking or feelings towards him or the NBA. Being gay or straight doesn't matter to me, and if people who theologically disagree with homosexuality want to be up in arms about this, let them. The overwhelming support for this guy will drown them out.

 
Enhance89 said:
I look forward to the day when this kind of news doesn't matter, but I understand why it matters now and I think it's important that he did this.

It doesn't change my thinking or feelings towards him or the NBA. Being gay or straight doesn't matter to me, and if people who theologically disagree with homosexuality want to be up in arms about this, let them. The overwhelming support for this guy will drown them out.
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I agree...

No slight to Mr. Collins, but this would carry more weight if he was a superstar in the NBA.

 
I heard on the radio this morning that the whole sport of soccer came out as gay.

And that Martina Navratalova is pissed about something.

 
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I wonder how HuskerBoard will react when the first member decides to let slip in conversation that he/she is gay. It'd be nearly statistically impossible for us to NOT have at least one frequent poster who's gay, but to date, I don't know of anyone who's discussed it publicly here. I presume the reaction will be similar to the better reactions Collins is getting from his peers. This is a pretty good bunch of folks here, after all.

 
The conversation on gay rights is an ongoing thing right now. Check back in fifty years and see if a story like this is even a story. Right now it is, and it will be in the NFL when someone comes out, and baseball, etc. But the reality is the gay rights movement has succeeded, evolving from the "we're here, we're queer" awareness to a more low-key and normalized/rights driven mode. Pretty soon this will all be over (at the legal level). Probably there will be vestiges of bigotry, just like there is with racism. This, too, shall pass.

 
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Personally I think this is already ho hum news for a vast majority of people. I think we're past the point where anyone really cares what orientation a person is. I think it matters little that this Collins guy was relatively obscure or if it were one of the biggest names in any sport. Sure a bigger name would receive a little more coverage and the story might linger a bit longer but there just aren't that many people left that are going to throw a hissy over it and the ones that do are going to find out quickly they're in the minority.

Somebody/some group needs to organize a universal "coming out" day and advertise the heck out of it and convince everyone, not just athletes but everyone from all walks of life, to announce on a set day. Then maybe we could collectively quit paying attention to it and just let people be who they're gonna be. Get it all out of the way in one fell swoop and get on with our lives. And, as most of you know, I am by no means some big supporter of the movement. Personally I don't get it and probably never will but I don't need to. I just simply feel people have the right to be who they are and the rest of us can stop acting like it is any business of ours.

 
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