Culliver’s take on gays ignites positive debate
The NFL’S culture towards homosexuality appears to be in transition, writes BRUCE ARTHUR.
Thanks, Chris Culliver. Really. “On this team, with so many different personalities, we just accept people for who they are and we don’t really care too much about a player’s sexuality,” said Baltimore Ravens linebacker Terrell Suggs on Thursday. “To each their own. You know who you are, and we accept you for it.”
On Thursday at the Super Bowl people were asking players about homosexuality, which is probably a first at the Super Bowl, unless you count the occasional questions which were asked Tuesday and Wednesday, mostly to Ravens linebacker Brandon Ayanbadejo, who is an outspoken advocate of LGBT equality. They were asking because 49ers nickel back Chris Culliver told a comedian on Wednesday that “I don’t do the gay guys, man. I don’t do that. No, we don’t got no gay people on the team, they gotta get up out of here if they do.”
This prompted precisely no public response from the NFL, but a stern one from the 49ers; a chastened Culliver apologized repeatedly, said that he had a gay relative reach out to him, and had a meeting with his coach, Jim Harbaugh, which presumably consisted of a lot of the coach yelling at him for being a distraction. And on Thursday, it was a topic of conversation.
“I’ve said this before — being a homosexual is just your sexual preference,” said 49ers receiver Randy Moss. “That doesn’t mean you’re a bad person. I don’t really judge people. I don’t really care, being in the locker-room, being outside the locker-room, we’re all human.”
Sports Illustrated ran a photo of 49ers fans celebrating in a gay bar last week, and in it, two men were kissing in the background. At Super Bowl XLVII, Ayanbadejo has talked about it. But Culliver, because he was unaware enough to let slip how he really feels, jumpstarted the conversation. Which was helpful.
“I’d say 50 per cent of (NFL players) think like Culliver, 25 per cent of the people think like me, 25 per cent don’t necessarily agree with all the things I agree with, but they’re accepting,” Ayanbadejo said. “It’s a fight. It’s an uphill battle. But we went from 95 per cent who think like Culliver, so we’re winning the fight.”
Ravens offensive lineman Matt Birk is on the record as opposing gay marriage — he has had conversations with Ayanbadejo on the subject, and says, “I just think he’s wrong, and we have to leave it at that.” But when asked if a player could come out as gay in the NFL, Birk says, “I think so. I do, I really do. But it would obviously be a huge decision.”
“Who knows? There could be somebody gay in our locker-room right now that’s scared to come out, which he has a right to be if he is scared to come out because of all of this and how other teammates might feel,” 49ers safety Donte Whitner said. “But I feel like anybody can be who they want to be, if they want to be that.”
Not every player felt that way. Not every player will. Mike Ditka took to the TV and declared being gay a choice. The conversation is moving toward a place where a player could come out, one day. Thanks, Chris Culliver.
“The positivity and the love is always going to win, it’s always going to triumph,” Ayanbadejo said. “Yeah, there’s a lot more media [attention] today ... because of the negative situation. But we can take a negative thing and turn it into something positive here.”