NFL PRIDE 🏳️‍🌈

Talk'OH! Tuesday

Written by Glenn Javier

If this was more than a decade ago, the World of Sports and the LGBTQ+ community would never see eye-to-eye. This is because of the deeply rooted heteronormative viewpoint of the industry (especially football), especially in the amount of pressure given to the male athletes on being straight, masculine and aggressive.

Apart from Michael Sam, Las Vegas Raiders Defensive end Carl Nassib just made NFL history when he came out as gay - stating he had been holding this for so long. He is now the first active NFL player who's part of the rainbow family. Other athletes have come out as gay after retirement, but Carl is the first to do so while still active.

[Original] Photo from Getty Images

THE VIRAL POST

Carl, 28, made this revelation through an Instagram video that hit more than 10K likes in just an hour (Update: 618K likes as of Tuesday 6:30 PM EST) and was commented on by his team's official IG with three black heart emojis. Check it out below:

Video from Instagram @carlnassib

"I just wanted to take a quick moment to say that I’m gay... I just think that representation and visibility are so important.”

He also mentioned in the minute-long video that he's a very private person, adding to his statement that he's not doing this for attention. Following his video were a series of screenshots that explained more about his coming-out story. Take a look at them below:

Photos from Instagram @carlnassib

According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Nassib’s No. 94 jersey is the top seller across all NFL fanatics platforms since he came out on Monday.

THE SUPPORT

“Representation matters”

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement - praising Carl for sharing his truth.

The NFL player also got a lot of positive feedback, especially on Twitter (see photo below). From his teammates, opposing teams, retired athletes and his loyal fans, everyone was proud of him.

THE LEGACY

Carl used this historic moment as an opportunity to shed a light on the lingering cycle of abuse done to LGBTQ+ youth where he mentioned donating $100,000 to The Trevor Project, an American nonprofit organization focused on suicide prevention efforts catered to the said minority.

“I truly love my life and cannot understand why I have been blessed with so much,” he wrote on one of the screenshots.

He ended his speech by saying “Happy Pride Month and Go Raiders.”

To donate, visit www.thetrevorproject.org/donate