Box Turtle Bulletin
News and commentary about the anti-gay lobby“Now you must raise your children up in a world where that union of man and box turtle is on the same legal footing as man and wife…”
News and commentary about the anti-gay lobbyFebruary 9th, 2014
Michael Sam, an All-American defensive lineman for the University of Missouri Tigers, has come out as gay in interviews with ESPN and The New York Times. According to statements made to both outlets, Sam came out to his team mates and coaches last August:
“Coaches just wanted to know a little about ourselves, our majors, where we’re from, and something that no one knows about you,” Sam said. “And I used that opportunity just to tell them that I was gay. And their reaction was like, ‘Michael Sam finally told us.’ ”
Asked what that moment felt like, Sam said, “I was kind of scared, even though they already knew. Just to see their reaction was awesome. They supported me from Day One. I couldn’t have better teammates. … I’m telling you what: I wouldn’t have the strength to do this today if I didn’t know how much support they’d given me this past semester.”
Sam was named the Southeastern Conference’s Defensive Player of the Year by the Associated Press, and he was unanimously selected to the first-team All-American. He is already the first Division I college football player in history to come put as gay. If he is picked up on the NFL draft in May, then Sam could become the first openly gay player in NFL history.
Latest Posts
Featured Reports
In this original BTB Investigation, we unveil the tragic story of Kirk Murphy, a four-year-old boy who was treated for “cross-gender disturbance” in 1970 by a young grad student by the name of George Rekers. This story is a stark reminder that there are severe and damaging consequences when therapists try to ensure that boys will be boys.
When we first reported on three American anti-gay activists traveling to Kampala for a three-day conference, we had no idea that it would be the first report of a long string of events leading to a proposal to institute the death penalty for LGBT people. But that is exactly what happened. In this report, we review our collection of more than 500 posts to tell the story of one nation’s embrace of hatred toward gay people. This report will be updated continuously as events continue to unfold. Check here for the latest updates.
In 2005, the Southern Poverty Law Center wrote that “[Paul] Cameron’s ‘science’ echoes Nazi Germany.” What the SPLC didn”t know was Cameron doesn’t just “echo” Nazi Germany. He quoted extensively from one of the Final Solution’s architects. This puts his fascination with quarantines, mandatory tattoos, and extermination being a “plausible idea” in a whole new and deeply disturbing light.
On February 10, I attended an all-day “Love Won Out” ex-gay conference in Phoenix, put on by Focus on the Family and Exodus International. In this series of reports, I talk about what I learned there: the people who go to these conferences, the things that they hear, and what this all means for them, their families and for the rest of us.
Prologue: Why I Went To “Love Won Out”
Part 1: What’s Love Got To Do With It?
Part 2: Parents Struggle With “No Exceptions”
Part 3: A Whole New Dialect
Part 4: It Depends On How The Meaning of the Word "Change" Changes
Part 5: A Candid Explanation For "Change"
At last, the truth can now be told.
Using the same research methods employed by most anti-gay political pressure groups, we examine the statistics and the case studies that dispel many of the myths about heterosexuality. Download your copy today!
And don‘t miss our companion report, How To Write An Anti-Gay Tract In Fifteen Easy Steps.
Anti-gay activists often charge that gay men and women pose a threat to children. In this report, we explore the supposed connection between homosexuality and child sexual abuse, the conclusions reached by the most knowledgeable professionals in the field, and how anti-gay activists continue to ignore their findings. This has tremendous consequences, not just for gay men and women, but more importantly for the safety of all our children.
Anti-gay activists often cite the “Dutch Study” to claim that gay unions last only about 1½ years and that the these men have an average of eight additional partners per year outside of their steady relationship. In this report, we will take you step by step into the study to see whether the claims are true.
Tony Perkins’ Family Research Council submitted an Amicus Brief to the Maryland Court of Appeals as that court prepared to consider the issue of gay marriage. We examine just one small section of that brief to reveal the junk science and fraudulent claims of the Family “Research” Council.
The FBI’s annual Hate Crime Statistics aren’t as complete as they ought to be, and their report for 2004 was no exception. In fact, their most recent report has quite a few glaring holes. Holes big enough for Daniel Fetty to fall through.
“Google” is a trademark of Google Inc.
© Box Turtle Bulletin. All Rights Reserved.
Posts 
Posts via daily email:
Ben in Oakland
February 10th, 2014
Good for you, Michael Sam. You’ve done a great thing. May the trickle of out athletes become an avalanche, if you don’t mind the mixed metaphors.
I find it interesting that his teammates apparently already knew before he told them.
And they didn’t care.
Regan DuCasse
February 10th, 2014
He’s handsome, witty, strong, a very imposing presence (6’3, 260lbs), and the brother can PLAY.
He’s a very talented athlete, according to his record.
The funny thing is, any other players who claim they are intimidated by his presence anywhere, are kinda showing what pussies THEY are.
That’s the hilarious irony about homophobic straight men. Gay men become the equalizing factor.
No self respecting, intelligent straight woman should be attracted to straight men who turn into such sexually insecure wimps.
I be like, yeah how does it FEEL now, a-hole?
MattNYC
February 10th, 2014
Kudos to Sam. Hope the Dolphins get him (and treat him with respect–their recent history probably makes that a low probability).
Steve in Claremont
February 10th, 2014
What a great young man! Given what he says about his past, I think that being openly gay and coming out before the NFL draft are just two in a long string of courageous acts. The success he’s had has required a lifetime of bravery. I wish him well!
Ben In Oakland
February 12th, 2014
My letter, published in today’s Chronicle. I’m on a roll!
Congratulations to Michael Sam for coming out at this crucial juncture in his career. Standing up for himself as a proud gay man and football star, he shows far more class and bravery than those disparaging him as a distraction to football’s real goals: making money, and supporting the mythos of masculinity.
We gay men are the whipping boys of this mythology, someone for “real men” to look down on as not “really” men. Imagine a gay man who can compete in the masculinity-defining fields of sport and strength, and still be gay, proud of it, and just as much a man as anyone, maybe even bigger, stronger, and faster. How threatening is THAT to this fragile thing called masculinity?
This isn’t about football or gay men sharing locker rooms. We already do, and the same nonsense was argued against repealing Don’t Ask Don’t Tell. This is about the fears engendered and supported by the mythos of masculinity, fears that heterosexual men won’t measure up to the myth, fears that mythologically-not-masculine gay men will surpass them, making them less than men, and perhaps treating heterosexual men exactly as the latter frequently treat women.
And how frightening is THAT?
Mark F.
February 12th, 2014
Is he single? LOL.
Leave A Comment