Phoenix Suns president Rick Welts opened up in an interview with the New York Times and revealed he is gay. Welts' story comes at a critical moment in sports as homophobia is confronted through a variety of positive and negative moments.
May 16, 2011 - In what may become a defining moment for the NBA, Rick Welts, president of the Phoenix Suns and basketball lifer, took a courageous step and came out to the world on Sunday, revealing he is gay. With the support of commissioner David Stern, NBA legend Bill Russell and Steve Nash, Welts took his story to the New York Times, stepped out of the shadows and opened a line of communication with the goal of changing the culture in sports.
Welts' story comes in the midst of a movement in professional sports. In the past month, homophobia has been confronted head-on through a series of positive and negative events, all intertwined by the single issue of homosexuality in sports. Combined, these events have opened a healthy, running dialogue as fans and public figures engage in conversation in an effort to foster change.
By nature, sports are a masculine enterprise. To rise to the professional ranks, it takes drive and an alpha-male personality. In locker rooms and board rooms dominated by a vast collection of alpha males, any perceived weakness is pounced upon and attacked vigorously. And in the world of athletics, homosexuality is one of those perceived weaknesses. Players equate gay with weak and use derogatory terms for homosexuality while othering, a concept Andy Hutchins explored after Kobe Bryant mouthed the words "f***ing fa***t" towards a referee.
The locker room culture as it stands now isn't conducive to acceptance. Athletes either fit in with the crowd or face ridicule or worse. It's akin to bullying or a mob mentality on the playground. And it creates a fear that shouldn't exist anywhere, but especially not in a workplace that becomes more like a home for professional athletes. The culture of fear makes Welts' stand even more courageous, but also keeps countless others silent.
Slowly but surely, professional athletes are emerging as allies and taking up causes that go far beyond sports. It's these causes, which include speaking up for same-sex marriage and vigorously denouncing hate speech, that are creating a culture shift in professional sports. And recently, it feels as though the dam has broken and we've reached critical mass, as Hutchins said.
Sean Avery is one of the NHL's bad boys: an agitator, fighter and all-around pest. His style of play on the ice is imposing and he's known as a playboy off the ice, dating a litany of high-profile female celebrities and bragging openly about his conquests. In 2008, Avery made waves with the following statement about his conquests.
"I'm just going to say one thing. I'm really happy to be back in Calgary; I love Canada. I just want to comment on how it's become like a common thing in the NHL for guys to fall in love with my sloppy seconds. I don't know what that's about, but enjoy the game tonight."
But in a sign of growth, Avery recorded a public service announcement in support of gay marriage a few weeks ago. By doing so, an ally emerged from the unlikeliest of places. Avery's public service announcement opened a line of communication about same-sex marriage, but also touched a nerve and drew both positive and negative reactions.
Shortly after the public service announcement debuted, Todd Reynolds, a player agent at Uptown Sports, called Avery's support of gay marriage misguided and wrong, setting off a firestorm of reaction. Uptown Sports represents numerous professional hockey players and Reynold's used the company Twitter account to broadcast his thoughts to the world. Reaction was quick and overwhelmingly negative as the social media universe pounced. While Reynolds' words harmful and discriminatory, the conversation about homophobia in hockey that followed turned what could have been a negative moment into a positive.
Jared Dudley and Grant Hill recorded a public service announcement about hate speech, specifically using the term gay in a derogatory manner. The commercial, coincidentally recorded on the same day as Kobe Bryant's outburst and released on the same day the New York Times article on Welts ran, had a simple message directed towards teenagers: Don't use gay as a synonym for dumb. With the public service announcement, Hill and Dudley became allies and took a stand against hate speech.
But as a reminder of how far we, as a society, have to go, Hill was hit with tweets calling him various derogatory terms. The words included those he urged viewers not to use and came immediately after the commercial debuted. Instead of getting angry or firing back, Hill exposed the tweets while noting they were the reason why a PSA was necessary. It was another teachable moment.
While allies continue to take stands, we're constantly reminded of how far sports have to go to reach acceptance. For every positive action, there's been a negative reaction or vice-versa. But the conversation that's followed each of these moments has been more important than the initial event that triggered the discussion.
Welts should be applauded for the incredible amount of courage it took to step out of the shadows and into the spotlight. But by no means should it be the end. Where would we be if the public didn't speak up after Reynolds' tweet about same-sex marriage? Where would we be if Kobe Bryant's hate-speech was met with tacit approval? By using these incidents as teachable moments, we're seizing an opportunity to grow and evolve while having honest, open discussions about issues that transcend sports.
Athletes are stepping up and becoming allies, but it's not enough. These moments are all pieces in a puzzle that's far from complete. But the moments are giving us, as fans, an opportunity to truly make a difference and to show Welts' and many others that they are not alone.
You have a voice. Use it. Speak up and move the conversation forward. Don't sit on the sidelines and allow the prejudice to continue. Don't let Welts' stand go to waste. Use the power of social media and the power of your own voice to educate, discuss and foster change. The opportunity is staring us all in the face, and how we react can change the landscape of sports, both now and for the future.
11 comments
Comments
In and of itself, it is good thing that Welts
and also CNN’s Don Lemon announced that he also is gay.
But Welts is not a former basketball player though he has been involved in sports for quite some time, so I don’t really know if this affects the Suns for the better or for the worse. If he were a coach or a GM, then I could see this affecting the Suns negatively because homophobic players and coaches would not want to play for him.
by thewiz06 on May 16, 2011 11:54 AM EDT reply actions
Kudos to you Brian Floyd for a super job well done.
by oregonslee on May 16, 2011 4:03 PM EDT reply actions
Mr. Floyd: Spineless Fascist
The author calls these words “harmful and discriminatory”:
“Very sad to read Sean Avery’s misguided support of same-gender “marriage”. Legal or not, it will always be wrong."
You fascist. This is an opinion that a majority of Americans have repeatedly supported in election over election. YOU don’t get the right to call a legitimate opinion (whether I disagree with it or not) HARMFUL and DISCRIMINATORY. I don’t care whether you feel you have license to do that because of the demographics of this site or not. He has an opinion, and your attempt to silence with your heated rhetoric is ridiculous.
Personally, I don’t give a shit this guy came out of the closet. Thousands of gay people don’t run to the New York Times when they come out. It’s a personal decision for them and their families. Publishing a book when you come out (Don Simon) or posing for a spread for the New York Times doesn’t make you a hero. It makes you desperate for attention. The American people are remarkably tolerant – leave them alone and you can pretty much do what you want. Mr. Welt chooses to have the spotlight shown on him. I think I speak for most people when I say…who gives a f**king f**k.
The bigger picture is thus: the elite media (hey King Kaufman!) has taken to making this their cause celebre, and by squashing dissent, trying to make this is a civil rights issue. It’s not. It’s about the quiet subversion and destruction of the nuclear family – you know, quite simply the most successful method we’ve had for 10,000 years in raising children. But that’s okay – I am sure you all know what’s best for the rest of us. I look forward to making sure all my thoughts are pre-approved by the Andy Floyds of the world.
Mr. Floyd should be ashamed of himself. He thinks he’s a paragon of courage and a real trailblazer writing this heroic piece, instead he’s a parrot and a pawn. Real courage would be what Uptown Sports did – coming out against an issue popularized by its support of 90% of the media and speaking what he thought was right. That takes real courage. What you wrote here? Spineless.
by Buffalo66 on May 16, 2011 4:08 PM EDT reply actions
Funny you call the author a facist for supporting equality for all people
Personally, I think taking rights away from tax paying citizens is more fascist and oppressive. I get it. You don’t personally agree with the concept of marriage equality. As an American, that is your right. It is not your right though to deprive others of their civil rights.
Public support is growing on the issue and at the 50-52% support shown in the last 5 public polls it is already well above the support that interracial marriage had when the Supreme Court upheld the Equal Protection Clause (it had 37% support at that time). Support has been growing exponentially over the last two decades and it isn’t a trend that will let up anytime soon.
As for “destroying the nuclear family,” I assume you have some actual proof of this. Marriage equality exists in a number of states and countries and there is no evidence that is has caused any harm. Most logical people would agree that it makes no sense to argue that 2 gay people getting a marriage license would in any way hard the marriage of two heterosexuals. And once again, it should be noted that no one is saying what is best for you. I am guessing you were born heterosexual and you certainly will always have the right to marry a woman and raise children. However, people who are born gay want that same protection for their loved ones and their children.
So thank you to Mr. Floyd. This was a well-written and thoughtful article. Please don’t be deterred by a poster who is willing to resort to name calling when they disagree with someone’s point of view.
by SPTSJUNKIE on May 16, 2011 4:30 PM EDT up reply actions
Way To Go SPTSJUNKIE
Too many spoilt affluent Americans no longer respect the concept of equal rights under the law which is the basis for all freedom and civil rights in the USA. Many sports fans are on the wrong side of this issue and the truth should be told loud and clear. No discrimination against gays in sports – period1
by oregonslee on May 16, 2011 9:57 PM EDT up reply actions
“He has an opinion, and your attempt to silence with your heated rhetoric is ridiculous.”
Maybe you should consider your own advice?
by DavidCEisen on May 16, 2011 4:49 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions 2 recs
History.
I think you mean “totalitarian” or “authoritarian”, which are general categories to denote controlling political attitudes. For instance, the Frankfurt School (a Marxist organization) polled Americans in the 50s and found that there was no right or left tendency for authoritarian attitudes. Fascism, on the other hand, identifies actual political ideologies. Fascists were conservatives, nationalists and generally homophobic, racist, etc (Germany, Italy, in WWII). This isn’t a problem in authoritarian Communist situations such as the USSR or China, where acts of control were (are) predicated by antagonism with the state. It is fascist rhetoric to make mandates against gays; it is totalitarian (or I would say, authoritarian) to mandate that it is illegal (not just morally wrong) to hold a homophobic position. In general there are phenomena that occur in either situation that muddle these categories. I think the rule of thumb is that totalitarian can signify any number of different political situations, while fascism is a specific political category for a specific time, which must occur alongside nationalism and state (rather than party) oriented politics. That is why to call current pan-Arabic nations is a bit confusing and to call middle-Leftists with politically correct tendencies “fascists” extremely confused (Obama, Floyd, et al).
If we are being accurate, I would say that Brian Floyd’s position is a Christian one, that it is morally wrong to marginalize the weak, the sick or the minority. It is only in America where one would call the moral platitudes of open network journalism fascist. Doesn’t it seem a bit silly?
by Super-Structure on May 17, 2011 12:46 PM EDT up reply actions
state party*
by Super-Structure on May 17, 2011 12:47 PM EDT up reply actions
Whatever!!!
U know this guy’s admission that he’s gay does not really mean anything. After all, he’s a front office guy. He’s not a player who shares a locker room and shower with his team mates. It’s looks like a gradiose and courageous gesture, but it really does not to anything. The players don’t care because he’s not in there with them, so the same homophobic behaviour will still continue. It’s all a big deal over nothing.
by Jeffrey Thompson on May 17, 2011 9:07 AM EDT reply actions
Does it occur to anybody else....
That overseeing the shameless pandering Los Suns debacle and this epic “courageous” announcement is nothing but a grandstanding diversion to draw attention away from the fact that the franchise Welts oversees in in a freefall?
The first thing that occurred to me was the obvious timing of this. I could care less about the announcement itself. To each their own.
The word “courageous” is the most abused and overused word in the English vocabulary and sure as hell doesn’t apply here.
At some point Welts and Nash are going to run out of gimicks and their fan base is going to get fed up with the crappy product their putting on the floor.
Maybe Welts ought to enlist his efforts in finding coaching and team leadership that acknowledges that there are two sides of the floor instead of meaningless grandstanding.
Maybe Welts ought to insist that his best player put half the effort on playing defense that he puts into continually trashing positions and issues popular to who are paying his salary.
by Finkelskyhook on May 17, 2011 6:22 PM EDT reply actions
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