In Support of Robbie Rogers

I just wanted to take a moment here on the blog and reflect on something, err someone, in the football world that made a little bit of history, and I really hope made a little bit of progress.  If you haven't seen the news from yesterday that former Columbus Crew and USA National Team member Robbie Rogers came out as gay and retired from football, you're probably living under some kind of rock.  This isn't a post about the news, but a chance for me to express my admiration and support.

There's no doubt about the fact that men's professional sports is probably the most difficult profession for gay men to be themselves in, or to "be out" if you prefer.  Think about it.  Not only are you on the playing field with a bunch of other guys who consider themselves "men's men," but you also have the increased scrutiny of being in the public eye.  For Rogers, and men like him, they've spent their entire lives working toward a goal which few people ever achieve, being a top level professional athlete and competing for championships.  I'm sure the pressure that they feel to keep up that appearance in the face of who they are and who they love is probably insane at times, and for Robbie, he finally decided that he couldn't do both.

I hope that's just a temporary decision on his part.  He's too young and too talented to be gone from the game, but if I try to walk a mile in his shoes, I can see how he might feel the need to walk away.  His happiness is most important, so if stepping away from the game is what he feels the need to do, then far be it from me to suggest otherwise.  I had the privilege to see him play, and I hope to do so again in future.

I also want to say how impressed I am with the US Soccer community for their show of support of Rogers over the last couple of days.  By far the majority of things I read or heard about him were overwhelmingly positive.  There were a few bad apples, but I'm not going to dignify them with more print.  It was great to see so many players, coaches, and fans throughout the US Soccer community step up and stand behind him in this.  Someone as brave as he is deserves that support.

So I'd just like to say thanks to Robbie for standing up and saying that it's ok to be who you are, and to acknowledge it, even if it's the harder road to hold.  I think he serves as a great example, not just to LGBT folks, but to all of us.  He's a great example of what it means to be a human being, and of the strength we all should find to be ourselves.