The National Football League, in its 2011 Collective Bargaining Agreement, has quietly updated its non-discrimination policy to include sexual orientation.
The policy change was first noticed by Pete Olsen at the blog Wide Rights:
The language from the 2006 Collective Bargaining Agreement Article VII, Player Security, reads:
Section 1. No Discrimination: There will be no discrimination in any form against any player by the Management Council, any Club or by the NFLPA because of race, religion, national origin or activity or lack of activity on behalf of the NFLPA.
The new language in the 2011 CBA, now moved to Article 49, reads:
Section 1. No Discrimination: There will be no discrimination in any form against any player by the Management Council, any Club or by the NFLPA because of race, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, or activity or lack of activity on behalf of the NFLPA.
Olsen at Wide Rights notes that famed attorneys Theodor Olson and David Boies — the lead attorneys in the case challenging California’s Proposition 8 — were on opposite sides of the NFL negotiations. Boies represented the team owners, and Olson represented the players.
The agreement was ratified by NFL players on August 4.
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