1. Homosexuality in Professional Sports By: Joshua Smith & Joshua Daniels   One the biggest issues in the athletic world is still holding strong on the top of the list in America. Is the coming out LGBT athletes the right thing to do and or will end up taking a negative turn for the worse. The answer is yet to be determined but there are people on both sides of the issue who hold true to what they believe in. The decisions made by a professional athlete to become open with their sexual orientation do have an effect on the players, the fans, and the entire society around them. Society has been shaped to have a constant form of thinking that makes it hard for people to change. Unfortunately some professional athletes have come out to be more comfortable with them and have paid the ultimate price. Things are changing in the world and public acceptance of LGBT integration is growing but some people cannot cope with the reality of the fact that you can stop change.   Our focus are on two of the most popular professional sports in the United States: Men’s Basketball and Football. No man has come out publically while actively playing in the NFL. Four have come out publically after retiring. These players waited until they are retired to come out publicly because of fear that they would not be accepted by the rest of the NFL   There could be separate locker rooms for heterosexual and the homosexual players. This would allow the players to feel more comfortable about being in the locker room.   There could be some commercials and other media outlets to improve awareness and acceptance of homosexual people.   The Player Association of each league could include a seminar about homosexuality in the locker room. This seminar should include how all player are suppose to treated inside and out of the locker room. It should also clear up some misconceptions and stereotypes about homosexuality. Many players have come out and said that they would be accepting of an openly homosexual teammate. Some of those current players consist of such stars as Robert Griffin (RG3) of the Washington Redskins, Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers, Dwayne Wade (D-Wade) of the Miami Heat, Rob Gronkowski of the New England Patriots. Robert Griffin III told GQ Magazine “there’s no better time for a gay football player to come out of the closet than right now.” (Waldron,2013) Religion seems to be where most of the controversy begins. Many Christians believe that homosexuality is a sin. ESPN NBA analyst Chris Broussard doesn’t believe that homosexuality is acceptable at all. Chris Broussard along with some players that are Christians believe that homosexuality is a sin. He says “I think that all sex outside of marriage between a man and a woman is a sin. If you’re openly living in unrepentant sin…that’s walking in open rebellion to God and to Jesus Christ.” (Ostroy,2013) Some current and former players still feel that homosexuality does not belong in the men’s locker room. Former Charlotte Hornets Star Larry Johnson, who is now the New York Knicks business and basketball operations representative, said “Gay men in the locker room would make me uncomfortable.” He also goes on to say “Here’s a man that say he’s attracted to other men. Now he’s walking around a locker room with naked men… I’m attracted to women, is it ok for me to walk around a women’s locker room naked, and they be naked.” (Young,2013) Heterosexual thinking in athletics has led to a traditional view in sports culture that is highly intolerant of homosexuality (Donnelly and Young, 1988). Studies show that male adolescents who participated in football were significantly more likely to hold homophobic attitudes than other peers their age. Even with the apparent view of homosexuals in sports, recent scholarships have documented an increasing trend toward openly gay athletes in college level sports (Anderson, 2012). This trend, however, has not been seen in professional sports, where homosexuality still remains largely stigmatized in major U.S. Professional men's team sports. This same trend can also be found in England's Professional Footballers' Association (PFA), as a recent ad campaign devised by the PFA against homophobia failed because no professional football player was willing to associate themselves (Taylor Claims, 2010).   Baxter, K. (2012, December 29). In pro sports, gay athletes still feel unwelcome. In Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 30, 2013, from http://articles.latimes.com/2012/dec/29/sports/la-sp-sports- homophobia-20121230 http://articles.latimes.com/2012/dec/29/sports/la-sp-sports-   Downey Jennifer (2008). HOMOSEXUALITY: PSYCHOTHERAPEUTIC ISSUES. 147-150.British Journal of Psychotherapy. 24(4), 429-468.   Haggerty George (2005). Homosexuality and its Discontents. GLQ: A Journal of Lesbian and Gay Studies. 11(1), 147-150.British Journal of Psychotherapy. 24(4), 429-468.   Hanlon Kelly (2003). Heterosexual Male Hegemony and Dominance Bonding: The Root of Homophobia in Sport. Southern Sociological Society.   Kimmel Michael (2003). Adolescent Masculinity, Homophobia, and Violence. American Behavioral Scientist. 46(10), 1439-1458.   King, P. (2013, August 4). Gay in the NFL. In The MMQB. Retrieved November 4, 2013, from http://mmqb.si.com/2013/07/23/gay-in-the-nfl/http://mmqb.si.com/2013/07/23/gay-in-the-nfl/   O’Higgins-Norman James (2009). Is homophobia Inevitable. Journal of Sociology. 45(2), 201-220.   Ostroy, A. (2013, April 30). Is America, and Pro Sports, Really Ready for Active Gay Players?. In Huffing Post Sports. Retrieved October 30, 2013, from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/andy-ostroy/is-america- and-pro-sports_b_3185189.htmlhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/andy-ostroy/is-america-   Waldron, T. (2013, August 14). Robert Griffin III: Time Is Now For Openly Gay NFL Player. In think progess. Retrieved November 4, 2013, from google.com.   Young, R. (2013, April 30). Larry Johnson says he'd be 'uncomfortable' with gay teammate. In CBS Sports. Retrieved October 30, 2013, from http://www.cbssports.com/nba/eye-on-basketball/22171242/larry- Johnson-says-he-would-be-uncomfortable-with-a-gay-teammate http://www.cbssports.com/nba/eye-on-basketball/22171242/larry-   Zeigler, C. (2013, April 5). The first gay NFL player to come out will face no backlash at all. In sb nation. Retrieved October 30, 2013, from http://www.sbnation.com/2013/4/5/4187978/gay-nfl-players-backlash- reaction http://www.sbnation.com/2013/4/5/4187978/gay-nfl-players-backlash- LGBT is a turning point in modern society that will not be overlooked any further. People are fighting for the rights to live a normal life and in some parts of society; homosexuality is still not generally accepted. Pro-athletics is starting to receive some of it first big historical moments in LGBT history do to people’s need for normality and balance. The general population does not fully understand the background of LGBT’s and in result they have a negative view on what they are. Sports being the gender specific activity that society had idealized, that makes it even harder for LGBT’s to become public with their sexual orientation due to there profession. That being said, everyone has the right to live a normal life without being subject to discrimination. At the beginning of a new era, there is always going to negative or positive risk in the subject of coming out of the closet for every individual. Esera Tuaolo was a Defensive Tackle who played for a few teams in the NFL. Those teams include the Green Bay Packers who drafted him. Then he was traded to the Minnesota Vikings. After that he was picked up by the Jacksonville Jaguars, then the Atlanta Falcons and finally ended his career with the Carolina Panthers in 1999. David Kopay was a Running Back who played for a few teams in the NFL. He was drafted by San Francisco 49ers. Then he played for Detroit Lions, Washington Redskins, New Orleans Saints, and finally ended his career with the Green Bay Packers in 1972. Roy Simmons was a Left Offensive Guard in the NFL. He was drafted by the New York Giants and ended his career playing for the Washington Redskins in 1983. Wade Davis was a Defensive Back who only played one year in the NFL for the Washington Redskins in 2003. Jason Collins was a Center in the NBA. He was drafted by the Houston Rockets and traded to the New Jersey Nets. He also played for the Memphis Grizzlies, Minnesota Timberwolves, Atlanta Hawks, Boston Celtics and finally ended his career with the Washington Wizards in the 2012-2013 season. All of these Athletes played professional sports but was afraid to publically admit that they were homosexuals until the end of their career or until they retired. BACKGROUND PLAYERS WHO HAVE PUBLICALY ADMITTED BEING HOMOSEXUAL CONTROVERSY IN THE LOCKEROOM SOLUTIONS CONCLUSIONS SOURCES Can you tell who’s gay and who’s straight?