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White House commends Jason Collins on coming out

By MARY CLARE JALONICK
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The White House is commending NBA veteran Jason Collins for becoming the first active male player in the four major American professional sports to come out as gay.

White House spokesman Jay Carney called that decision courageous and says the White House supports Collins. He says he hopes the 34-year-old center's NBA colleagues will also offer support.

"We view that as another example of the progress that has been made and the evolution that has been taking place in this country," Carney said.

Obama announced his support for gay marriage during his re-election campaign last year. Organizing for Action, a grassroots group run by Obama loyalists that grew out of his 2012 re-election campaign, expressed support as well, writing to Collins on Twitter on Monday that the group's supporters "stand with you today."

Collins announced he is gay Monday in a first-person account posted on Sports Illustrated's website. He has played for six teams in 12 seasons, including this past season with the Washington Wizards. He is now a free agent.

First Lady Michelle Obama took to Twitter Monday afternoon to applaud Collins.

"So proud of you, Jason Collins! This is a huge step forward for our country. We've got your back!" the tweet read. It was signed "mo" - signifying that the first lady personally wrote the message.

Former President Bill Clinton also voiced encouragement for Collins, releasing a statement that asks fans, NBA colleagues and the media to support and respect him. Clinton said he has known Collins since he attended Stanford University with his daughter Chelsea.

Clinton said Collins' announcement Monday is an "important moment" for professional sports and the history of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community.

Collins is "a good man who wants no more than what so many of us seek - to be able to be who we are, to do our work, to build families and to contribute to our communities," Clinton said. "For so many members of the LGBT community, these simple goals remain elusive."

Chelsea Clinton also tweeted her support for Collins Monday, saying she was proud of her friend for having the strength and courage to be the first openly gay player in the NBA.

Chad Griffin, the president of Human Rights Campaign, a gay rights group, said Collins has "forever changed the face of sports."

"No longer will prejudice and fear force gay athletes to remain silent about a fundamental part of their lives," Griffin said.

The NBA player also received support from Rep. Joe Kennedy III, D-Mass., his college roommate. Kennedy tweeted Monday that "I've always been proud to call (Collins) a friend, and I'm even prouder to stand with him today."

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Associated Press writers Julie Pace and Josh Lederman contributed to this report.

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By rae121452 | 04/29/2013 06:06 PM | 6 comments
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  • Yeah, Kluwe is a bright, funny and outspoken guy. That editorial is a good read.

    An aside: He might be out of a job in MN, as the Vikings drafted a punter this year. That's a position teams don't often spend a draft pick on.
    BearinFW 04/30/2013 01:24 PM
  • @jacker--I'm a huge CB fan. He's a no nonsense guy and he always cuts through the bullshit. I did not see last night's games, but I was wondering if Kenny qualified his statement with giving some support to JC before launching to the tired Christian argument?

    @BearinFW--I'm a huge MN fan, too. Thanks for posting the link. Until I read JC's and MW's SI columns, I had never heard of Chris Kluwe, punter for Minnesota Vikings. Following is the link to Kluwe's editorial that Navratilova was referring to in the SI article. If you get a chance to read it, it's so damn funny. Calling out Maryland politician, Edward Burns, was needed, but calling him a narcissistic fromunda stain is classic! (I had to look up fromunda): http://deadspin.com/5941348/they-wont-magically-t … porting-it

    Additionally, here's another Kluwe editorial that ran in the Huffington Post yesterday: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/chris-kluwe/when-th … 77689.html

    I'm glad the president and his wife are using their platform to speak out for JC and gay rights. Right on!
    furball 04/30/2013 01:11 PM
  • LMAO, I heard Charles Barkley and Kenny Smith discussing this last night on TV. Smith brought up the fact that some Christians would have problem with a gay teammate. Due to their sexuality and what they consider sinful sexual activity. Barkley retorted that they should have a problem with all their hetero teammates, who are fornicating or fooling around on their wives. He didn't care what a teammate does in his personal life only what he does on the court. the only question is can you play the game?
    jacker 04/30/2013 10:29 AM
  • Here's what Martina Navratilova has to say: Jason Collins is a "game-changer." Martina, remember, was probably the first major athlete to come out -- in 1981. Hard to believe it has been that many years ago.

    She notes that coming out then cost her some endorsements, but because she was in a solo sport, it wasn't a threat to her job. That isn't true of athletes in team sports.

    http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/magazine/news/20 … t=hp_t2_a5
    BearinFW 04/30/2013 12:56 AM
  • This was an early story, but I saw a later story that said Obama actually called Collins. Now that's some high-level support. I think that as far as a key figure in gay rights history, Obama's major achievement is that he was able to make a huge impact on minority views of gay rights, black views in particular. Plenty of other Democrats could have done as well, or even better, than him on some other gay issues, but they would have had little success in that.
    BearinFW 04/30/2013 12:50 AM
  • Fist Lady Michelle Obama just weighed in on NBA vet Jason Collins, who today became the first active male player in a major American team sport to announce he’s gay.

    Here's what she tweeted:

    "So proud of you, Jason Collins! This is a huge step forward for our country. We've got your back! -mo"
    rjzip 04/29/2013 11:11 PM