Before Jason Collins came out, Joel Anderson explained why male pro-atheletes in the most popular American sports have remained closeted:
Mike Freeman of CBSSports.com has reported at least one current NFL player may come out publicly as gay in the next few months. By and large, however, sports figures in major teams sports have stayed in the closet. Why are they waiting? What are the player’s concerns? Not with teammates or the reaction inside the locker room. “America is the greatest place in the world. But America is more homophobic than locker rooms,“ Charles Barkley said recently on The Dan LeBatard Show in Miami. Pro athletes “have played with gay players before. … The crowd is going to be shouting things more than it’s going to be uncomfortable in the locker room.” The particular player Freeman wrote about for CBSSports.com felt the same. “The player fears he will suffer serious harm from homophobic fans, and that is the only thing preventing him from coming out.”
Those big men on the football field cannot take some taunting from the stands? Go watch the Jackie Robinson movie – and grow some.
The Dish 