It should come as no surprise that cities as gay friendly as Vancouver and Whistler would extend that hospitality to this year’s Olympic Games.
The two communities are the first Olympic hosts to with Pride Houses to welcome gay and lesbian athletes and tourists and educate Olympic visitors about diversity and the LGBTQ community.
Vancouver’s Pride House is an inclusive pavilion for members and allies of the gay community, and the first of its kind in Olympic history. (more…)
Amaechi
Former NBA basketball player John Amaechi says that a sporting society tolerant of gay would achieve greater results in the competitive arena, but in an interview with London’s Daily Telegraph, he says he doesn’t advise gay athletes to come out.
Amaechi came out as gay in 2007, the first NBA professional ever so to do. And the response to his own decision has made him aware of what it takes publicly to announce homosexuality.
“I personally have spoken to 10, 12 current professional footballers who are gay, they exist, I promise you,” he says. “As it happens none of them have asked me if they should come out. But if they did, I would tell them not to. I’m not a gay rights activist.” (more…)
(Image: NBC)
A gay Vancouver man wants to know what the Olympic organizing committee is going to do about the 20-minute verbal and physical homophobic onslaught he endured at the Feb 8 opening ceremonies rehearsal.
Tyler Sheppard says a woman who incorrectly insisted he and his friends were sitting in her seats repeatedly called him and his friends “fucking faggots.”
Sheppard says the abuse continued even after ushers determined Sheppard and his friends were in the right seats. (more…)
Brendan Burke, son of Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Brian Burke, who gained national attention just months ago in a moving coming out story profiled by ESPN.com, died today in a tragic automobile accident. He was 21 years old.
“We are saddened to report that Brendan Burke, the youngest son of Leafs president and general manager Brian Burke, succumbed to injuries he suffered in an auto accident … in Indiana,” the Leafs said in a statement Friday night. “The family asks for privacy at this difficult time.”
Burke, who was an assistant on the University of Miami (Ohio) hockey team, was reportedly driving east on a snow-covered U.S. 35 in a Jeep Grand Cherokee when his vehicle slid sideways into an oncoming 1997 Ford Truck,. Burke’s passenger, 18-year-old Mark Reedy, also died in the accident.
The younger Burke rose to national prominence last year when he told his story of the love and acceptance received from his dad after coming out as gay.
In a profile by ESPN sports columnist John Buccigross, Brendan Burke’s story was told in a poignant second-person narration, inviting the reader to put himself into Brendan’s shoes, while describing the young man’s journey into self discovery.
In an excerpt from the essay:
On this night in 2007, you are petrified of your dad. Because you, Brendan Burke, at 19 years old, are about to tell your dad, Mr. Testosterone, that you are gay.”
In a statement in the article from the elder Burke at the time, “I had a million good reasons to love and admire Brendan. This news didn’t alter any of them.”
Brendan told reporters he hoped his story will give others the confidence to come forward.
“I think it’s important my story is told to people because there are a lot of gay athletes out there and gay people working in pro sports that deserve to know there are safe environments where people are supportive regardless of your sexual orientation,” he said.
Mike Penner, the veteran Los Angeles Times sportswriter who made international headlines in 2007 when he announced he was transsexual and began working under the byline “Christine Daniels,” has died.
Colleagues said Saturday that Penner was found dead at his Los Angeles home and that suicide was the suspected cause of death. He was 52.
“He was one of the most talented writers I’ve ever worked with,” said Times Sports Editor Mike James, adding that Penner covered numerous beats including the National Football League and sports media during his more than two-decade-long career at the paper.
In 2007, Penner made headlines by announcing in a column that he planned to live life as a woman named Christine Daniels. (more…)
