TO BE GAY IN SPORTS IS STILL THE HARD-WAY
When Tim Hardaway (pictured) adamantly stated on a sports talk show last week that he hated gay people and wouldn't want to be in a locker room with one, I was more surprised that he shared his strong feelings publicly than what he actually admitted.
Don't get me wrong, Hardaway should never have used the word "hate" to describe an oppressed group of people, especially in regards to his own background. But in the context of what a modern-day athlete stands for, Hardaway's resentment toward a gay teammate is not that exaggerated. Many players just don't have the impulse to admit such a thing because they want to maintain their manly mojo in a machismo sports culture.
The mega-jackpot sports entertainment business has never been more "hip-hop"; underlying codes instigate participants to bring their street demeanor and toughness to the playing field in order to compete successfully. And if they don't wear a cocky game face or can't take a hard foul like a man - like a true champion - they're subject to be called "gay," "soft" or a "pussy."
Did you happen to catch the NBA All-Star player introductions on Sunday? If you did, do you remember how many of them smiled when their name was introduced? Well, only about three. Most of them tilted their head up a tad and slightly smirked, basically saying, "I'm the shit and I'm a straight shooter." Players don't want their peers and fans to get the wrong idea about them, which, in their world, would be to exhibit "soft" behavior. This status quo starts on the streets and is topped off by team owners, like Mark Cuban and the Maloof brothers, who further perpetuate players' heterosexual desires and high-rolling lifestyles.
Some states are finally coming to terms with same-sex marriages, but sports still struggle mightily for gay pride and acceptance. After Hardaway's comments came out of the closet, you could just imagine the curiosity of team members around the country wondering if anyone was really gay in their own locker room. Hopefully, coaches organized open discussions with their players in an attempt to break preconditioned homosexual beliefs and attitudes.
We're still at the stage, though, that if you are a gay athlete, it's preferred that you're a 20-point scorer or an All-Star to be accepted. This past weekend, basketball greats Shaquille O'Neal and Charles Barkley engaged in playful kissing acts, but their reputation remained safe afterward. As witnessed, the gamble for gay rights in sports is very much open for a harder push.
6 comments:
Did you seen the John Amechi interview on Real Time with Bill Maher this past Friday? Maher asked the questions nobody else did- and in one case, Amechi stated how NBA locker rooms are the gayest places around- full of peacocks strutin their feathers - guys pluckin eyebrows, admiring their bodies in the open, etc. That's the exact reason why the NBA product today is so crappy compared to the 80s and early 90s. Players are pre-madona sissy boys who are all image and truely soft. Being a majority youthful black league- hip hop is the prefered choice of image/culture for them. And the hip hop image of thugs and guns is what many of the NBAers want, but if you were really a thug, then you wouldnt be in the NBA. Youre not busy shooting guns, youre busy shooting jump shots. Considering the amount of ticky tack fouls called in today's game, these players are truely soft. Many could not hang with the body banging of the 70s and 80s. So its a joke that these players keep this thug image but they have to because they truely know they are more sissy than thug. And there is the whole African American community and acceptance of homoesexuality- hence why there are so many down low brothers - and everyone knows theres for sure many in the NBA.
I agree with you about how players are somewhat premadonnas and are taking better care of their bodies, etc. But at the end of the day, meterosexual is not homosexual. I still think many players would have a problem with a gay teammate.
But I don't agree with you that players being premadonnas and taking better care of themselves has diluted the NBA product. The league's game play and talent level has never been better. Unfortunately, several isolated incidents in the last couple of years has turned away fans. I think your angle that players are "soft" is really being confused with the new rule changes, which promote a plethora of foul calling.
On a side note... You could argue that the college basketball product will get worse as more and more players use college as a "year off" to prepare for the NBA.
Well metro is the gateway drug to homo...lol. But as far as the product of the NBA, yes the talent level is higher. They jump higher, run faster, etc. But that doesnt produce a better overall product of play and entertainment in my books. The 'game' has been lost in the past 15 years. With new superstars such as Wade, James, Paul, Nash and even Kobe, the art of the game is coming back. Players today are overpaid marvels of talent that do not know how to 'play the game.' The 90s ushered in the next 23 - the one on one Superstar. We are moving away from that back to more of an 80s style game (Suns, Pistons of today), where you have 2 really key selfless players surrounded by a team of GOOD, hardworking roleplayers. We are still about 5 years away from reaching that selfless, team basketball that the 80s were about. Until then, the NBA is subpar entertainment - to the NFL and the NBA of the 80s.
I was taught when I was a kid that honesty was the best policy; the rules change in the adult world when we realize there is an appropriate time and place but many of us don't grow up as fast as we need to - survival of the fittest and in this case honesty was not the best policy....people need to take care of their baggage in private.
Hardaway is a jerk to so openly express his inner thoughts to a hungry media-type like LeBatard. He has jeapordized his business career (his name was erased from the car wash), he will lose his basketball commentary job (for the time being), and he has probably lost his seat in the AAA Arena where he frequently was highlighted on the jumbo screen. More importantly, he has re-emphasized the fact that prejudice still runs rampant, even coming from a black man against another targeted group. There is no hope for equality of men/women on this planet..........
Good words.
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