in support of Jason Collins

Kitchen Knife Forums

Help Support Kitchen Knife Forums:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

JBroida

KKF Vendor
Founding Member
Joined
Feb 28, 2011
Messages
6,801
Reaction score
1,736
Location
Beverly Hills, CA
A bit off topic from knives, but this is one of the best articles i've read in a long time and i wanted to share our support for Jason Collins. I hope this gives other people the courage to step up and be proud of who they are... whatever their sexual orientation, race, or any other destinguishing factor... no one should be ashamed of who they are...
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/magazine/news/20130429/jason-collins-gay-nba-player/#all

*sorry if this crosses the politics line... i thought it was important
 
that couldnt have been easy.

hope it all works out. sucks this even is a big deal in today modern world.

thanks for posting.
 
Pretty huge move, and hopefully it makes a difference. I'm really impressed with him stepping up like this.
 
And kudos to Kobe for tweeting his support. That plus support from a few other significant figures will help keep this positive response going.
 
Was just reading this earlier, brave move and good for him.
I'm a huge boxing fan and recently Orlando Cruz came out as the first openly gay boxer.
Orlando Cruz and Jason Collins have changed their sports forever.
I think it's great that these guys have stepped up.
 
I have tremendous respect and admiration for Jason Collins for doing this. The personal difficulties he faced prior to coming out mirror what my other friends who are now openly gay have told me. But, on top of that, he's doing it on international stage.

I hope the best for him.
 
It's interesting. The media loves it.
It's also a shame that it's news that a man is gay.
One thing that I'm proud of is the human diversity in my line of work. As macho as it gets and as gay as it gets, black, white or red and everything in between. In my experience it has never been an issue and only enhances the work place.
Does that mean we're enlightened?
 
Every time something like this is printed homophobia fades a little bit more.
 
It's interesting. The media loves it.
It's also a shame that it's news that a man is gay.
One thing that I'm proud of is the human diversity in my line of work. As macho as it gets and as gay as it gets, black, white or red and everything in between. In my experience it has never been an issue and only enhances the work place.
Does that mean we're enlightened?

+1 on that.

But I am glad that there seems to be a fair share of knifenuts that does not have an issue with it and is willing to speak up. Kudos to you guys.
 
It's interesting. The media loves it.
It's also a shame that it's news that a man is gay.
One thing that I'm proud of is the human diversity in my line of work. As macho as it gets and as gay as it gets, black, white or red and everything in between. In my experience it has never been an issue and only enhances the work place.
Does that mean we're enlightened?

Restaurant folk just have a low tolerance for BS (back of the house anyways). We've seen and been through a lot, so if you can produce, ultimately you're good. I feel ya on a gay dude being news...but as a gay dude, I gotta say, it's news because it's a relevant human rights issue. And people coming forward to culture understanding is needed. It's good for everyone to see we all can be happy, healthy, productive and successful regardless of sexuality. We all deserve equal rights.

Good on you, Jon.
 
Yes, indeed -- good for him. For a professional athlete -- especially a black professional athlete -- to come out like this is an important step, and I hope it helps erode some of the persistent homophobia in that world.
 
It's being reported as a big story in 'American sport' outside of the US too. The first time a well-known US athlete has come out. Really?
 
It's being reported as a big story in 'American sport' outside of the US too. The first time a well-known US athlete has come out. Really?

Not the first well-known athlete, but the first male athlete in a big money team sport; basketball and American football are still perceived as bastions of "traditional" US masculinity in a way that other sports are not. There are also deep taboos about homosexuality in much of black America. Proportionately more black gay men are deeply closeted, especially among those who are perceived to be (or perceive themselves to be) conventionally masculine/macho. All of that adds up to this being a bigger issue -- and a more courageous act -- than would be the case with many other athletes.
 
Not the first well-known athlete, but the first male athlete in a big money team sport; basketball and American football are still perceived as bastions of "traditional" US masculinity in a way that other sports are not. There are also deep taboos about homosexuality in much of black America. Proportionately more black gay men are deeply closeted, especially among those who are perceived to be (or perceive themselves to be) conventionally masculine/macho. All of that adds up to this being a bigger issue -- and a more courageous act -- than would be the case with many other athletes.

Good for him.
 
And people coming forward to culture understanding is needed. It's good for everyone to see we all can be happy, healthy, productive and successful regardless of sexuality. We all deserve equal rights.

+1

To me, this is precisely why it was particularly important.
 
It's crazy to think of how much things have changed in my short lifetime. I never thought it would be so widely accepted. I'm happy that people can come out and be true to themselves and to the rest of the world. I can only imagine how terrible it would feel to have to keep a secret and lie to everyone for your entire life.
What people do in their bedrooms is none of my business. It's all about the content of your character and your actions.
That's what matters.
 
i just wanted to add one quick note here... i was really worried when i posted this that there might be some backlash here. I'm really happy to see that there has not been any. This speaks volumes to the type of community we have been able to create here.
 
I have a lot of friends who are gay. I've listened to many stories about how difficult their lives were before they were out, trying to hide a very fundamental part of who they were from everyone. I wish something like this wasn't big news, but more greeted with a shrug and a "good for him". It's not quite that way yet. I'm sure it will be eventually. Like K-nerrd, how I view someone has to do with how they treat others, their actions, and their character. Who they date or marry, whether gay or straight, is their business not mine.
 
i just wanted to add one quick note here... i was really worried when i posted this that there might be some backlash here. I'm really happy to see that there has not been any. This speaks volumes to the type of community we have been able to create here.

I'll give you some backlash. Basketball sucks and anything good in sports should not happen in the NBA.
 
not too many openly gay fighters, but a few openly lesbian fighters

Anyways, if you ever find yourself in LA, i'm always catching up on saturday night fights on sunday at the store ;)
 
Man, if I'm ever in LA, I'm there :thumbsup:
 
i just wanted to add one quick note here... i was really worried when i posted this that there might be some backlash here. I'm really happy to see that there has not been any. This speaks volumes to the type of community we have been able to create here.

:plus1::goodpost: don't it just!
 
Thanks for posting, Jon, and nice to see so many positive responses.

Yes, this shouldn't be big news, but it is. At some point, a "story" like this will be non-news. I see Collins' courage as a significant step in the right direction.
 

Latest posts

Back
Top