Golden State Warriors assistant head coach Jarron Collins and his brother Jason spoke at the 2016 Democratic National Convention in support of LGBT rights.
Jason is perhaps best known as the first active publicly gay athlete in the four major men’s professional sports in the United States. He signed a 10-day contract with the Brooklyn Nets on February 23, 2014, playing 11 minutes against the Los Angeles Lakers.
Jason revealed that he came out to the Clinton family before going public, and let people know that his sexual orientation didn’t make him different from anybody else, as transcribed by Politico:
“Before I came out to the world on the cover of Sports Illustrated, I came out privately to the Clinton family. I have known their family for almost 20 years. I knew that they would accept me for who I was; and that they would help pave a path for others to do the same. I am forever grateful for their words of wisdom back then and their unconditional support. They know that my sexual orientation made no difference in my ability to play basketball, just as someone’s gender makes no difference in his or HER ability to lead our nation.”
Jarron delivered a strong message as well, via Politico:
“How do you tell your kids not to be a bully if their president is one? How do you tell your kids to respect their heritage if their president disparages it? How do you tell your daughters they are empowered if their president reduces women to their physical appearance?”
The speech by the Collins brothers comes shortly after the NBA announced that they would be removing the 2017 All-Star Game from Charlotte over the discriminatory HB2 bill.
Adam Silver and the NBA have arguably been the best across pro sports in handling situations outside of the playing arena when it comes to the four major sports leagues, and having intelligent individuals such as the Collins brothers certainly helps that.
[Politico]
