Despite the likes of Jason Bay and R.A. Dickey (above) telling the New York Daily News’ Andy Martino they’d gladly appear in a PSA aimed at gay youth, the New York Mets are planning an anti-bullying spot with an organization besides It Gets Better, who’ve recently won the support of the San Francisco Giants.
If the Mets proceed with a more general anti-bullying effort, they will avoid raising homosexuality with a group that–despite the willingness of some to appear in a video–sometimes struggles to accept it. Even as the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy is set to be abolished, many baseball players say privately that the major league locker room is not ready for the same integration.
Like the military commanders who opposed lifting “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” players cite concerns about a lack of comfort in showers, and some point to a religious belief that homosexuality is immoral. An openly gay player would have to overcome those attitudes among his teammates, and listen to the casually homophobic language that flows in the clubhouse.
“It would be a difficult thing for the first player who comes out,” said one veteran major leaguer who said he would support a gay teammate. “I have probably played with gay people, and just don’t know it. It would have to be an established star, and that guy would be like Jackie Robinson.”
Fair play to Martino for pointing out the (sickening) reality of the situation, but surely there’s a world of difference between making a YouTube commercial and actually embracing an openly homosexual teammate? Sure, it’s preferable they do both, but there’s something a bit too easy about reducing a genuine human rights issue to a matter of, well, being civil to nerds. What possible risk could the Mets run by expressing support for bullied LGBT teens?
I’m glad that they recognize bullying, but bullying of heterosexual kids usually doesn’t result in suicide, not like the bullying of homosexual teens does and has in the recent past. It also usually doesn’t result in other horrible things, like murder (ie; Matthew Shepherd (sp?)
I also don’t get the whole secretive support of this invisible gay teammate – what are you harming by admitting who you are, and showing your fans that you actually have some humanity?
The Seattle Mariners are the third to take this project on, and I’m proud of them for it. I hope that we as a people in this country start to judge people on their character, rather than who they sleep with, at some point before I die.