Ways of Grace

by James Blake

  At first Burns, who is also the pastor and founder of the Rising Sun First Baptist Church in Woodlawn, Maryland, defended his letter, but a few days later in a weekend phone interview with the Baltimore Sun, Burns relented: “Upon reflection, [Ayanbadejo] has his First Amendment rights. And I have my First Amendment rights. . . . Each of us has the right to speak our opinions. The football player and I have a right to speak our minds.”

  This is a powerful example of activism in action because of its almost immediate effect. For Kluwe to persuade such an influential figure to publicly admit that Ayanbadejo has his right to speak his opinion, and to his opinion, is an important first step. I highly doubt that Burns’s feelings on gay marriage have completely changed, but to me this is progress because his public response could sway others. To me, considering Burns’s station as a state representative, it seems to fly in the face of human rights and equality in a country that was built on those tenets, that this much progress is needed to grant another member of the human race equal rights. His actions are unconscionable and self-defeating. This is another reason why activists have a necessary role in today’s society, and what they can do when they are stalwart, informed, and dedicated.

  In April 2016, Ayanbadejo, the Sports Illustrated Sports Activist of the Year, along with Kluwe and the New Orleans Saints linebacker Scott Fujita, filed a voluntary brief with the Supreme Court in support of plaintiffs challenging bans on gay marriage. The brief mentioned the NBA center Jason Collins and the NFL free agent Michael Sam, the first openly gay players in the NBA and NFL, and their struggle to be accepted by their teams, their fans, and the media.

  Collins, who has played for six pro teams and in two NBA Finals, came out as gay in 2013 and Michael Sam in 2014. In Sports Illustrated, Collins wrote, “I didn’t set out to be the first openly gay athlete playing in a major American team sport. But since I am, I’m happy to start the conversation. I wish I wasn’t the kid in the classroom raising his hand and saying, ‘I’m different.’ If I had my way, someone else would have already done this. Nobody has, which is why I’m raising my hand.”

  In elaborating on why he was coming out at that time, he wrote, “Now I’m a free agent, literally and figuratively. I’ve reached that enviable state in life in which I can do pretty much what I want. And what I want is to continue to play basketball. I still love the game, and I still have something to offer. My coaches and teammates recognize that. At the same time, I want to be genuine and authentic and truthful.”

  “I am not the only gay person in the NFL,” Sam said during a speech and Q&A session in Dallas in 2015, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. “I’m just saying there is a lot of us. I respect the players that did reach out to me and had the courage to tell me that they were also gay, but they do not have the same courage as I do to come out before I even played a down in the NFL. Was it a risky move? Yes. But at that moment, the reason why I came out is I thought it wasn’t going to be a big deal. Maybe I was naive. Maybe I thought it was 2014, and people will understand that there’s gay NFL players. There’s gay athletes everywhere. But I was clearly wrong. It was a huge deal.”

  Both Sam and Collins were praised by President Obama and their journeys as openly gay athletes dominated sports coverage. Before retiring in 2015, Collins played thirteen seasons in the NBA. He played for the New Jersey Nets, the Memphis Grizzlies, the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Atlanta Hawks, the Boston Celtics, and the Washington Wizards. After the 2012–13 NBA season ended, Collins publicly came out as gay. He became a free agent and did not play again until February 2014, when he signed with the Brooklyn Nets and became the first publicly gay athlete to play in any of the four major North American pro sports leagues. In April 2014, Collins was featured on the cover of Time magazine as one of the one hundred most influential people in the world.

  Michael Sam publicly came out as gay after completing his college football career. He became the first publicly gay player to be drafted in the NFL. Sam’s draft stock never recovered after he came out. He went through training camp with the Saint Louis Rams and appeared in all four preseason games. Sam was one of the last cuts by the team despite his notable performance. He was finally signed by the Dallas Cowboys, where he lasted until October, when he was released. He found a home with the Montreal Alouettes before the 2015 season, and became the first publicly gay player to play in the Canadian Football League (CFL). Since Michael Sam came out, no other professional male athlete has made the decision to do so. We have to wonder how an athlete as talented as Sam, the 2013 SEC co-defensive player of the year, took so long to find a permanent home with a team, or why no other athlete in the NFL has come out as gay since Sam.

  In their Supreme Court brief, Ayanbadejo, Fujita, and Kluwe draw a parallel between homophobia in professional sports and the fight for civil rights and equality. “Is it really too hard to see the parallels between this and what people said of Jackie Robinson almost 70 years ago?” the brief states. “Jackie Robinson was a singular athlete and singular man, but the slurs hurled against him sprang from the same place as the slurs hurled against Michael Sam. They are illegitimate views, wrongly motivated, and used to take equal rights away from the minority. They led this Court to apply the Constitution properly in the area of race a half-century ago, and they should lead to proper application of the Constitution again today.”

  Kluwe’s and Ayanbadejo’s support of the It Gets Better Project has made a difference to the upcoming generation of young people fighting discrimination and homophobia. The It Gets Better campaign reaches out to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender youth around the world to show support of their journey and to let them know that it will get better. The project started in 2010 when the author and syndicated columnist Dan Savage created a YouTube video with his partner, Terry Miller, to inspire hope for young people facing harassment and bullying, particularly in the wake of young gay students taking their lives because of bullying in school. The movement has inspired more than fifty thousand user-created videos, which have been viewed more than fifty million times. The organization has received video submissions from celebrities, politicians, athletes, and activists, among them Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Ellen DeGeneres, Anne Hathaway, and Colin Farrell, as well as members of the Broadway and media communities.

  In 2011, the San Francisco Giants became the first MLB team to make an It Gets Better video. Shortly after the Giants’ video was released, the Baltimore Orioles became the second Major League Baseball team to join the It Gets Better campaign. In August 2012, the San Francisco 49ers became the first NFL team to participate in the program.

  The Backlash of Sports Activism

  Chris Kluwe and Brendon Ayanbadejo are undeniably ardent supporters of gay rights and marriage equality. The advocacy of these determined activist athletes is undoubtedly making a difference in the world, but at what personal cost? Always outspoken, Kluwe wrote a Deadspin column in 2014 titled “I Was an NFL Player Until I Was Fired by Two Cowards and a Bigot.” Kluwe believes his continued support of same-sex marriage and marriage equality contributed to the Vikings’ decision to cut him after the 2012 season. He also believes this is why, despite still having the physical ability to compete in the NFL, he has not found a place on another team. “I can still hit the ball 45 yards outside the numbers with good hangtime, and at the tryouts I’ve had this year I’ve gotten praise from the scouts and personnel people on hand, but for whatever reason I cannot find a job.”1

  Kluwe thinks that no matter how much he wants to prove he can play, he will no longer punt in the NFL. Whether it’s his age, his minimum veteran salary, his habit of speaking his mind, or a combination of all three, he believes his time as a football player is over. “Punters are always replaceable, at least in the minds of those in charge, and I realize that in advocating noisily for social change I only made it easier for them to justify not having me around. Some will ask if the NFL has a problem with institutionalized homophobia. I don’t think it does. I th
ink there are homophobic people in the NFL, in all positions, but that’s true for society as well, and those people eventually get replaced. All we can do is try to expose their behavior when we see it and call them to account for their actions.”2

  Kluwe believes in his cause so strongly that he brought a lawsuit against the Minnesota Vikings in 2014 following his release from the team in May 2013, which he is convinced was due to his continued support of marriage equality and gay rights. The suit initially sought damages of $1 million to Kluwe, who would donate it to LGBT causes. The parties settled for an undisclosed amount, which the Vikings agreed to donate directly to five LGBT organizations, with Kluwe agreeing to receive nothing.

  Clayton Halunen, Kluwe’s lawyer, announced at a media conference that “the lawsuit will allege religious discrimination, sexual orientation discrimination, defamation and tortious interference with contractual obligations, resulting in Kluwe’s release from the team in May 2013 after what he says was a pattern of intolerant language by special teams coordinator Mike Priefer related to Kluwe’s activism on gay marriage.”3

  USA Today reported that “the Vikings retained former Minnesota Supreme Court justice Eric Magnuson and former U.S. Department of Justice trial attorney Chris Madel to complete what it called an independent review of the matter Jan. 3, the same day Kluwe made his allegations in a Deadspin.com post.”4

  The lawsuit was in response to the review, which Kluwe wanted to be made public. The media conference was called after Halunen received word from the Vikings that they had “no intent” to release the report to Kluwe or to the public. Kluwe and the Vikings reached a settlement the following August. Kluwe called the settlement an opportunity “to do a lot of good for a lot of people.”

  According to a report on ESPN.com, the Vikings and Kluwe’s attorney Halunen announced that “they had reached a settlement to resolve the former punter’s allegations of homophobic behavior by the team. It put the issue to rest 7½ months after Kluwe first published his allegations and avoids the prospect of a lengthy legal battle.”5

  The Vikings organization had initially announced a $100,000 contribution to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender charities. They also plan to make additional contributions over the next five years. The team will also enhance sensitivity training that is already required throughout the organization.

  At times, it seems that the leagues, the media, and the fans are more open to and accepting of damaging public missteps, or advocacy, if teams are producing on the court or field. For instance, the football star Ray Rice never got another chance in the league after he was filmed hitting and knocking out his fiancée. However, Greg Hardy, another pro football player, was given a second chance after his domestic violence case, I believe because his skills had not diminished the way Rice’s had. I also think that it is likely Adrian Peterson would have no trouble getting back on an NFL roster after being convicted of child abuse because he is one of the best running backs in the league.

  I am not advocating abuse in any way, just noting that these examples can set a precedent in regard to athletes deciding to speak out. I believe that no matter what Tom Brady or LeBron James says, because of their awesome abilities and sports prowess, there will always be a place for them on a roster. This gives them more leeway to speak their mind and not feel the same repercussions as someone like Kluwe. I am not saying that they have to speak up, but that they should understand that they have more freedom to do so. And if they do, the fallout will not be as detrimental.

  Chris Kluwe and I are both members of Athlete Ally, an organization focused on ending homophobia and transphobia in sports by educating allies in the athletic community. I joined Athlete Ally after another former pro tennis player, Mardy Fish, told me about it. Mardy is a good friend. I was a groomsman at his wedding. When he was approached to join, he thought I might also be interested. I consider Mardy an activist athlete. Mardy suffered cardiac arrhythmia, also known as irregular heartbeat, in 2012. It led to a severe anxiety disorder that left him sometimes unable to leave his house. Since then he has been an advocate for those with mental illnesses like anxiety and depression, which, like everyone else, professional athletes also struggle with. High-profile athletes in football, soccer, tennis, and skiing have publicly discussed their experiences with depression, anxiety, stress, and panic attacks.

  Chris Evert suffered from panic attacks after she stopped playing tennis. The New York Giants wide receiver Brandon Tyrone Marshall works to raise awareness for mental health after being diagnosed with borderline personality disorder (BPD), a mental disorder characterized by unstable emotional moods. Although a part of the sports community, it is often not discussed because of the competitive nature of professional sports athletes, who always want to be perceived as being at the top of their game, mentally and physically.

  I signed on with Athlete Ally as soon as I realized the good that the program does and how impassioned its founder, Hudson Taylor, is about the organization. During the Sochi Winter Olympics in 2014, Taylor advocated for LGBT rights and traveled to Sochi to speak out against the Russian law targeting LGBT citizens. The Anti-Gay Propaganda Law proposed by Russian president Vladimir Putin was signed into law in June 2013 and has prompted an increase in homophobic violence and hate crimes and numerous arrests of LGBT people in Russia. It has been widely referred to in the media as “one of the worst human rights violations in the post-Soviet era.” Hudson gave his support to adding sexual orientation to the Olympic charter’s antidiscrimination clause.

  It was a thrill for me to get an award at the inaugural Athlete Ally Action Awards in 2014, in only my second year with the group. I was proud to be honored along with Yogi Berra, Jason Collins, and Martina Navratilova. I didn’t realize what a difference my voice could make to help the LGBT community. It was an obvious decision. It seemed like the civil rights fights for African Americans of the generation previous. All LGBT people want is equal treatment under the law. At the very least there should not be laws that negatively target or affect them. That should not be too much to ask for. History shows how callous those who fought against equal rights are portrayed. I hope in the future that history will vindicate those who fought for equitable treatment for every person, no matter who they choose to love, and regardless of their gender or race.

  Like Chris Kluwe and Brendon Ayanbadejo, I can make a difference as a straight athlete who is not afraid to stand up for LGBT rights. I think of the civil rights movement and the white people who stood with blacks against bigotry and discrimination. I want to show that it is not just an issue for the gay population to face alone, because it should matter to all people if anyone is being treated in an unfair or unjust way. As the son of a black father, I am committed to fighting discrimination in any form it may take. When I hear tragic stories about partners who have been together for over twenty years and are not allowed in the hospital room because their union is not recognized, my heart breaks, and it will never make sense to me. This is especially true because we live in a country founded on fighting for the rights of its individuals.

  Since I have always held Chris Kluwe in high regard because of his advocacy, and since we are both members of Athlete Ally, I was excited when he agreed to talk to me about his activism and beliefs in human rights, especially after his highly publicized fallout with the Vikings. I greatly respected how he stood up for what he believed in regardless of whether it made him unpopular or its possible repercussions and consequences. Considering his outspokenness and his history, I was curious about his thoughts regarding sports franchises in general and about the role the public and management seems at times to want athletes to play. Chris did not have to think long about his answer.

  “Based on my experiences, sports franchises have become heavily corporatized, and they only want their athletes to play the role of ‘cog within the machine.’ That means not speaking out on controversial issues, regardless of stance, and concealing who you are as a person in order to avoid offending an
yone who might possibly buy a ticket or merchandise. I think this is a shame, because before we are athletes, we are human beings who are members of our society, and to ignore that in favor of a children’s game is abdicating our responsibilities as citizens.”

  Although I was no longer playing professionally, my decision to advocate for more police conduct oversight and accountability after my incident in 2015 was something I gave a lot of consideration to. I wondered if Chris had thought about what he was possibly getting into as an advocate for marriage equality and LGBT rights and if becoming an activist was something he had been thinking about for a while, or if a situation presented itself that he couldn’t ignore.

  “For me, becoming an activist was something that just kind of presented itself. When an anti–same sex marriage amendment was proposed in Minnesota, an advocacy group asked me if I would get involved in helping to defeat it, and I said yes, since I don’t think enshrining discrimination into a state’s constitution is a particularly wise idea. Becoming an activist isn’t something you have to spend months or years training to do, you just have to be willing to raise your voice when you have the platform and are in a position to help others.

  “The hardest thing I think for anyone is making that initial decision. You have to weigh the potential consequences, like loss of employment, or physical injury, and then ask yourself if you’re okay with the worst of those happening. If you decide you are, then go forward with no hesitation or regrets. In the end, if you can make the world a better place, in even the slightest way, it will have all been worth it.”