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My uncle Justin Fashanu and the gay prejudice that lives stubbornly on in football My uncle Justin Fashanu and the gay prejudice that lives stubbornly on in football
(5 months later)
In the 1980s and 90s, when my late uncle Justin Fashanu was playing football in England, prejudice and discrimination heavily marked society. He grew up in an environment where homosexuality was still a taboo subject, long before the notion of gay marriage. When he came out in an interview to a newspaper in 1990, he became the first – and still only – British professional footballer to be openly homosexual. (The American Robbie Rogers, who played for Leeds, quit British football earlier this year, then revealed he was gay.)In the 1980s and 90s, when my late uncle Justin Fashanu was playing football in England, prejudice and discrimination heavily marked society. He grew up in an environment where homosexuality was still a taboo subject, long before the notion of gay marriage. When he came out in an interview to a newspaper in 1990, he became the first – and still only – British professional footballer to be openly homosexual. (The American Robbie Rogers, who played for Leeds, quit British football earlier this year, then revealed he was gay.)
So much has changed in the more than two decades since Justin came out. Society has slowly pulled the veil away from the taboo subject and gay people have found their place in all areas of life. Senses of shame or fear have disappeared. And yet football still seems largely the same. Why? This question was provoked last week when Jason Collins, the American basketball player, announced that he was homosexual. A sign of progress, but hardly of good health – he is the first active player in any major American sport to come out.So much has changed in the more than two decades since Justin came out. Society has slowly pulled the veil away from the taboo subject and gay people have found their place in all areas of life. Senses of shame or fear have disappeared. And yet football still seems largely the same. Why? This question was provoked last week when Jason Collins, the American basketball player, announced that he was homosexual. A sign of progress, but hardly of good health – he is the first active player in any major American sport to come out.
We tend to think we are more advanced in Britain in matters of sexuality, but I've had conversations recently in which people tried to distinguish between different types of discrimination. A common argument is that racism is worse than homophobia as people don't choose their race. What many people don't understand is that people like my uncle don't make the choice to be name-called and bullied. He didn't choose to be "different". And he was brave enough to face the world.We tend to think we are more advanced in Britain in matters of sexuality, but I've had conversations recently in which people tried to distinguish between different types of discrimination. A common argument is that racism is worse than homophobia as people don't choose their race. What many people don't understand is that people like my uncle don't make the choice to be name-called and bullied. He didn't choose to be "different". And he was brave enough to face the world.
Football has resisted the change that the rest of society has taken on. Perhaps the key is that it is a sport that is viewed as a "real" man's game. The stereotypical image of a real man – held perhaps in the heads of many straight football fans as they don their club's colours – is resilient, aggressive. Perhaps on the terraces, the image of a homosexual man would be somebody gentle, giggling, feminine.Football has resisted the change that the rest of society has taken on. Perhaps the key is that it is a sport that is viewed as a "real" man's game. The stereotypical image of a real man – held perhaps in the heads of many straight football fans as they don their club's colours – is resilient, aggressive. Perhaps on the terraces, the image of a homosexual man would be somebody gentle, giggling, feminine.
The time has come for football, authorities and players both, to attack the core problem. We need more players such as Manchester United goalkeeper Anders Lindegaard, who criticised football fans for being "stuck in a time of intolerance". Lindegaard, straight himself, wrote on his blog: "Of course there is a problem if young homosexuals, who love football, have to quit the sport because they feel excluded." His conclusion was that football needed a "hero, someone who dares stand up for his sexuality".The time has come for football, authorities and players both, to attack the core problem. We need more players such as Manchester United goalkeeper Anders Lindegaard, who criticised football fans for being "stuck in a time of intolerance". Lindegaard, straight himself, wrote on his blog: "Of course there is a problem if young homosexuals, who love football, have to quit the sport because they feel excluded." His conclusion was that football needed a "hero, someone who dares stand up for his sexuality".
More incentives to stop discrimination need to be incorporated into football clubs and arenas. We need to change supporters' mentality in understanding what a "real man" is, especially when it comes to sports. Homosexual sportsmen shouldn't have to live a life where they are only celebrated for their achievements on the field. They need their fans, teammates, families and coaches to be able to accept and celebrate them for who they are off the field too.More incentives to stop discrimination need to be incorporated into football clubs and arenas. We need to change supporters' mentality in understanding what a "real man" is, especially when it comes to sports. Homosexual sportsmen shouldn't have to live a life where they are only celebrated for their achievements on the field. They need their fans, teammates, families and coaches to be able to accept and celebrate them for who they are off the field too.
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Amal Fashanu presented Britain's Gay Footballers, a BBC documentary on homophobia in footballAmal Fashanu presented Britain's Gay Footballers, a BBC documentary on homophobia in football
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