Ex-Rutgers athlete urges sports to dump gay slurs

ESPN

Ex-Rutgers coach Mike Rice hurls homophobic slurs at this players in practice.

Every sports fan, gay or straight, has been a victim of homophobia. That's because it has probably robbed us all of some terrific sports performances.

The homophobic language that is rampant in sports pushes great gay athletes to the sidelines. Words like those that now-fired Rutgers men's basketball coach Mike Rice hurled at players serve as the opposite of performance enhancement.

"I don't think anyone in the sports community would expect an athlete to be their best without being a whole person - you can't hide who you are, live a secret life, but perform at your best," says Sean Smith, a Rutgers graduate who captained the swim team there before graduating in 2005.

Smith, who is gay but was in the closet until his senior year, became depressed and self-destructive in part because of shame over his homosexuality. That's the subject of a powerful short film available at the Rutgers website. Smith said hearing even casual use of homophobic slurs had made him hate part of himself in a way that injured his self-esteem and could have inhibited his performance in the pool.

"I think the people taking the largest hit are obviously closeted student athletes," says Smith. "They're making huge sacrifices already to be where they are in their sports career. No one is saying any of these words in a positive way."

Smith has of course seen the coverage of the Rutgers scandal, which exploded on Tuesday when ESPN's "Outside the Lines" aired footage of Rice shoving, kicking and screaming at his players. Among the epithets Rice shouted were "f---ing fairies" and "f---ing faggots."

Smith says it's a sign of progress that the mainstream media highlights the language in Rice's tirades and not merely the shocking physical the coach doled out.

Smith now helps lead the nonprofit "Go Athletes!", a national network dedicated to "educating, engaging and empowering every generation of LGBTQ athletes and allies." He hopes Rutgers calls upon the organization to help educate the community there about the issues.

"I think Rutgers has an opportunity to take a leadership role in what an athletic department should be like," Smith says. "A safe place, where all students in general are being treated with respect."

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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/nydnrss/sports/~3/d7DiV6mQ48U/story01.htm

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