Why Jason Collins is coming out now?- Brandon Focht

Jason Collins is the first male athlete to come out as gay while still playing in the NBA. He finished last season and came out as gay this past summer. He is coming out now because he wanted to take a stand and felt that he was ready to come out. His college roommate had told him that he went to a gay parade and that is why he had wanted to come out because he felt envious that he could not support his own sexuality and that he had to hide it because he was a professional basketball player. There were a lot of mixed emotions after Jason Collins came out as gay. It was headline news on ESPN for a week, there were interviews with him as well. I feel like I have always been able to tell or have a hunch if another person is gay or straight. I cannot tell when someone is bisexual however not to ignore the binary thinking that we are brought to. I am going to just talk about being straight or gay and being a professional athlete. While we are starting to have this image that we need to be more acceptable in today's society that is why we are starting to soften, I believe as a nation. Everyone wants us to accept them for who they are and that is completely fine and I understand that. I don't have to accept anyone for who they are in my opinion because I have learned that being gay or straight is a choice. I do not think it is something that we are born with, and I believe it is a choice. In the end Jason Collins decided to come out, and people can turn either direction they can accept the fact that he is gay or step aside from him in a locker room. He is going to have to accept the fact that some people are not going to treat him the same. Not everyone treats straight people the same. I personally do not have a problem with people that are gay. I will still talk to them and get to know them as a person and see them for who they are outside of their sexuality. I do not agree with their sexuality choice however.