No one has uttered a word about fears of sharing a locker room with Collins. Perhaps, since they have shared a locker room with him in the past without having a clue that he is gay is more than enough reason to think it is not big deal. The reality is, it isn't a big deal. That is a remarkable indication of just how far we have come as a nation in a relatively short time period. The average American now seems to think that a persons sexuality is his personal business and none of the public's business. That is the way it should be.
There can be no doubt Collins, who has conducted himself with integrity and respect for his fellow athletes, will continue to do so now that he has told the world he is a gay man. Hopefully as the impact of his announcement settles in on the sports world, he will continue to be treated in the same manner by both his fellow athletes and the fans.
Such well known athletes as Charles Barkley, LeBron James, Magic Johnson, Shaquille O'Neal and Jerry Stackhouse were quick to offer their public support for Collins. “This was a great day for the NBA," said Barkley.
At 34 years of age and a current contract with the Washington Wizards worth more than 1.3 million dollars, Collins is in a good position to weather any adversity his announcement might cause. What he has done cannot help but have a positive impact on young gay athletes throughout the world. No one is under the impression that Collins is the only athletic star who is gay. Hopefully his courage in becoming the first NBA star to go public will encourage other professional athletes to do the same.
My dream, and the dream of so many others has been that the day will come when a person's homosexuality will be no more newsworthy than another's heterosexuality. The reaction to Collins seems to indicate we are drawing ever closer to that dream.
Thanks Jason for your courage and for your example.
Jack Scott
I can't help being annoyed by african-american male heterosexuals at work making a HUGE deal out of the vote on Gay marriage and quoting over and over again "Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve". You'd think that a people who have been subjected to discrimination wouldn't be so eager to discriminate against others but they most certainly ARE. Except for the news about Collins which is totally OK with this same group of black men. At the very least they should be consistent with their condemnations. It would appear that in their eyes only white people appear when the word Gay is spoken. Just make that Gay person a "brutha" and oh well it's different and that's OK. Funny how this issue from Jason Collins has exposed what appears to strongly resemble pro-black/anti-white racism.
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