Liam Day explains the political controversy behind Vikings punter Chris Kluwe’s viral rant, and urges gay athletes to break the stereotype that pits homosexuality against masculinity.
♦◊♦
Jumping into the fray next, though, is Minnesota Vikings punter Chris Kluwe, who posted a letter to Deadspin defending Ayanbadejo’s right to speak out in support of gay marriage and attacking Delegate Burns for his attempt to suppress free speech.
In addition to offering more than a couple of Matt Taibbi-like turns of phrase, the most popular of which, “They won’t magically turn you into a lustful cockmonster,” is quickly making the rounds on the internet, Kluwe makes three basic points: 1) the attempt to cow Ravens ownership into silencing one of its employees is un-American; 2) one of the delegate’s justifications for this request, that political activism has no role to play in sports, which, in his words, are strictly about “pride, entertainment, and excitement,” ignores the rich history that sports have played in the politics, particularly the racial politics, of this country; and 3) same-sex marriage will have exactly “zero effect on your life.”
The first point may be self-evident, but it is worth pointing out that Delegate Burns’ request comes in the wake of an earlier controversy in which the mayors of Boston and Chicago both attempted to do just about what he is, by publicly stating they would bar Chick-fil-A from opening franchises in their cities due to the owner’s outspoken opposition to gay marriage, and they both suffered backlash from it, not to mention helping to boost Chick-fil-A’s sales. Clearly, the good delegate from Maryland either wasn’t paying attention or has the memory of a flea.
Moreover, both this controversy and the earlier one come in the wake of the Supreme Court’s Citizens United ruling, which treats corporations as individuals when it comes to political contributions. I don’t know about you, but I’m somewhat uncomfortable with the idea that a company’s right to free-speech, with which the court equates political donations, might be protected, even as politicians attempt to stifle the speech of those same business’s employees. For the one thing we should not lose sight of is that the Baltimore Ravens are not just a football team. They are also a multi-million dollar business.
Kluwe’s third point is also well-made. Personally, I don’t understand the fervid religious opposition to gay marriage the way I understand opposition to, say, abortion. If one believes that life begins at conception, then I get why one would be opposed to any attempts to end a pregnancy. I believe the issue to be more complex than that, but, at the least, I get the passion it generates on the other side.
I simply don’t understand opposition to gay marriage in a free society. There are any number of activities that people engage in on a daily basis that violate the doctrines and/or practices of a particular church. I drink so much coffee it would probably be easier if I just mainlined it, despite the fact it violates Mormon practice. Millions of Americans eat between sun up and sun down during Ramadan and just as many eat meat on Fridays during Lent. Yet I don’t see the polite young prostletizers in the crisp white shirts and black neckties attempting to pry the Dunkin’ Donut’s cup out of my shaking hand.
♦◊♦
Also read: Chris Kluhe Kicks Serious Verbal Ass—And You Should, Too by Joanna Schroeder
AP photo
About Liam Day
This is brilliant.
As a straight guy who works out in a health club, I don’t feel less masculine simply because I don’t participate in a sport.
Finally, one of them blurted out, “Mr. Day, you write poetry!?” It was half exclamation, because the internet had told them it was true, and half question, because they still couldn’t understand how someone can both play basketball and write poetry. Simply by combining the multiple aspects of my self, I was, if only in a very small way, helping to deconstruct the stereotypes their pre-pubescent minds had started to form about what it means to be a man.
tell them also that that rap and spoken word they listen to is poetry. i seem to remember that samurais wrote poetry too
Look at Byron, famous for his poetry, but he was an expert boxer as well. And this in spite of his having a club foot which was on most people at the time a crippling deformity. He was a boxing manager and a romantic poet at the same time, and loved both women and men in his life.
Imagine that happening now.
Adam, if GMP had a Like button I would have clicked it for your comment.
Oh great, now I have a crush on Byron.
Kidding… But actually I somehow didn’t know all of that and it’s brilliant.
This is a much-appreciated and much-needed essay, and I think anyone favoring marriage rights for gays and lesbians should be grateful that sports figures—often society’s role models—have finally entered the discussion. In less than two weeks my daughter will be marrying her (female) partner, and so far everyone who was invited has expressed real joy that this union is taking place. Five years ago, I’d have blanched if someone had predicted that I would have a daughter-in-law, but I love her and feel gratified that she and my daughter have found happiness together. Prejudice of any kind dies hard—in this country and anywhere. Essays like this one must be written…read…and disseminated. Thank you!
When I was younger, middle school age, I was obsessed with what being a man means. I didn’t know much about it then and I don’t know much about it now. What I did know, is that Tupac was a man. I idolized him (for all the headaches that created for my parents). I wanted to be a rapper but all I was any good at was writing and I had a stutter.
Then my brother gave me a copy of “The Rose That Grew From Concrete”. Tupac writing poetry validated poetry as a ‘manly’ activity. Stupid? Yes. But true. Now I’m getting my MFA in Poetry and it may be because Tupac made it okay for me to pursue it when I was still young.
Good for you, dude. Boys need to know that being a man means a lot of things, not just a few narrow parameters.
Laim, you are right on target with this. Homophobia against gay men, and let’s be honest, that’s where the real hatred and physical violence are, is all and only about masculinity anda perceived failure of men to attain it.
However you seem to be a litlte confused on this point:
“I simply don’t understand opposition to gay marriage in a free society. ”
Do the people opposed ot gay mariage give any indication that they care about or respect a free society? Don’t many of their other positions also conflict with the basic precepts underpinning a free society? When they talk about freedom, aren’t they only ever talking about their own freedom?
As a straight man, I don’t feel that gay men are taking away from masculinity. There are plenty of straight men who are destroying masculinity. Not to mention gay men who are building it up. What being a man means to me is taking responsibility, for one’s self, one’s loved ones, and one’s society. A man pulls his weight and then some. When the going gets tough, a man pushes on through. A man is a provider, a protector, and a defender. These are the virtues a manhood, not the superficial stereotypes. Crying doesn’t make someone less of a man. Giving up, blaming others, and shirking responsibility does. Shed some tears and solder on. Gay, straight, or undecided, when you stand tall, take responsibility, and act with character and conviction. That is masculinity.