MICHAEL SAM, JASON COLLINS SUPPORT HOUSTON LGBT PROTECTIONS

Openly gay athletes Michael Sam and Jason Collins this week announced their support for the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance (HERO).

HERO prohibits discrimination in housing, employment and public accommodations based on several characteristics including race, religion, sexual orientation and gender identity.

Opponents sued Houston officials after they rejected a petition to put the ordinance up to a public vote. The city said that opponents had failed to gather sufficient valid signatures. But the Texas Supreme Court disagreed, ruling earlier this year that the city must repeal the ordinance or place it on the November ballot.

Collins, the NBA's first openly gay player, offered his support in a tweet: “No one should be discriminated against because of race, age, religion, sexual orientation or gender identity. #HERO #YESonProp1 #Houston.” Collins retired last year.

Sam, the first openly gay player to be drafted by the NFL, offered his support in a fundraising email for the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the nation's largest LGBT rights advocate.

“I know first-hand what it feels like to be unwelcome – to live an open and authentic life in a place where you can be ostracized or even discriminated against for simply being yourself,” wrote Sam, who left professional football earlier this year. “That's why as a Texas native I was thrilled when Houston passed the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance (HERO) last year... and equally disappointed when opponents petitioned for its repeal this year. Now it's on the ballot and it’s up to all of us to protect Houstonians from discrimination.”

SOURCE: ON TOP MAG

JASON COLLINS SUPPORTS MICHAEL SAM'S STINT ON DANCING WITH THE STARS & HIS NFL FUTURE

Jason Collins, the first openly gay player in the history of the NBA, is voicing his support of Michael Sam competing on this season of ABC's Dancing With the Stars.

Sam is the first openly gay player to ever be drafted by an NFL team but has been cut twice and is yet to play a regular season game in the league.

While he continues to train and hopes to be signed to a team for next season, his celebrity landed him the DWTS gig during what is the NFL off-season.

'I know Michael still wants to play in the NFL so since other players have done it, why not him?' Collins tells TMZ.

He also thinks Sam might have a bit of an edge on the dance floor.

'Athletes definitely should know how to move their body and should be strong for the partner lifting and all that fun stuff,' Collins says.

'I look forward to seeing him out on the dance floor and I hope he doesn't drop his partner,' he jokes. 'I wish him the best of luck.'

SOURCE: GAY STAR NEWS

JASON COLLINS, THE FIRST GAY NBA BASKETBALL PLAYER, RETIRES

Jason Collins, the first openly gay basketball player, has retired.

The 35-year-old will announce his retirement from the game at the Barclays Center, New York City, later on today (19 November).

Following his coming out 18 months ago, he was signed with the Brooklyn Nets. When he did this, he made history by being the first active male athlete from any of the four major North American professional team sports to do so.

Collins has now written an article in Sports Illustrated, paying tribute to how incredible the last year and a half has been for him and condemning the homophobia that remains in sport.

'It feels wonderful to have been part of these milestones for sports and for gay rights, and to have been embraced by the public, the coaches, the players, the league and history,' he said.

'It had been argued that no team would want to take on a player who was likely to attract a media circus from the outset and whose sexuality would be a distraction. I’m happy to have helped put those canards to rest. The much-ballyhooed media blitz to cover me unscrambled so quickly that a flack jokingly nicknamed me Mr. Irrelevant.'

Collins' most cherished memories were the standing ovation at his first home game in Brooklyn, meeting the family of Matthew Shepard and wearing the number 98 to honor his memory, and then those number 98 jerseys becoming top sellers.

He concluded: 'There are still no publicly gay players in the NFL, NHL or major league baseball. Believe me: They exist. Every pro sport has them. I know some of them personally.

'When we get to the point where a gay pro athlete is no longer forced to live in fear that he’ll be shunned by teammates or outed by tabloids, when we get to the point where he plays while his significant other waits in the family room, when we get to the point where he’s not compelled to hide his true self and is able to live an authentic life, then coming out won’t be such a big deal. But we’re not there yet.'

SOURCE: GAY STAR NEWS

JASON COLLINS SHARES HIS EXPERIENCES GROWING UP GAY IN 'IT GOT BETTER'

Jason Collins has joined other big names in an incredible new campaign that aims to provide a platform for queer celebrity experiences in an effort to let lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) youth realize that it really does get better.

Launched by Lexus in collaboration with the It Gets Better Project, the "It Got Better" docuseries is a collaborative effort between actress Lisa Kudrow and actor and HuffPost Blogger Dan Bucatinsky with celebrities such as Tim Gunn, Tegan & Sara and George Takei and Jane Lynch. In this powerful installment from Jason Collins, the out athlete talks about his entrance into the sports world, being a gay athlete, coming out and how Matthew Shepard's murder influenced him.

"In 2011 I started thinking about the rest of my life... thankfully I had a trainer and I saw online that he did an 'It Gets Better' video," Collins says. "There were so many times that I heard parts of my story in his story. I sent him an e-mail and told him in the e-mail I was gay and that I needed someone to talk to about it. We sat on a bench and it was actually the first time I said the words out loud, 'I'm gay.'"

Check out the incredible video above to hear more from Collins.

SOURCE: HUFFPOST GAY VOICES

JASON COLLINS LEADS MARRIOTT HOTEL’S NEW LGBTI TRAVEL CAMPAIGN

Hotel chain Marriott International is courting gay, lesbian, bisexual and trans travelers with a new ad campaign featuring out NBA star Jason Collins, trans model Geena Rocero and other LGBTI individuals.

Using the hashtag #LoveTravels, Marriott’s campaign features print ads and social media Collins called ‘important not only to the LGBT community but to society in general’.

The hotel company has recruited celebrity photographer Braden Summers to shoot the campaign. Summers made global headlines last year with his photo campaign to shoot romantic gay and lesbian couples around the world.

‘When I travel with a boyfriend, we really want to feel that sense of inclusiveness regardless of our sexual orientation or religion. We want that feeling of being welcome,’ the basketball star added in a statement. In recent years, hotel policies have become a hot bed of controversy with regards LGBTI rights.

As same-sex marriage becomes legal in more states and countries, marriage equality has been used as a barometer for what travel destinations are not only safe, but desirable for LGBTI travelers.

Some travel operators are changing their marketing approach in order to court the LGBTI traveler, while other businesses suffer because of anti-gay connections.

Last month international celebrities boycotted Dorchester Group’s hotels because the owner, Sultan of Brunei, implemented anti-gay laws, signaling LGBTI consumers are more readily holding businesses accountable for their ethics.

While many businesses place LGBTI-friendly policies under the umbrella of diversity and inclusion, being gay-friendly does come with some economic benefit.

According to Out Now Global, an LGBT marketing specialist group, the potential value of the LGBT travel market was set to reach $181 billion last year.

'Our goal is really to educate and engage and shift perception of our portfolio brand,' said Kristine Friend, senior director of segment marketing for Marriott International.

'We've decided to kick off a holistic campaign that really helps celebrate inclusiveness and beautifully illustrates our desire to make people feel at home at our hotels.'

Marriot hotel group in the UK has partnered with Gay Star News and Jean Paul Gaultier for this summer’s Pride Bags: Custom-designed goodie bags given away for free at London, Brighton and Manchester.
  

SOURCE: GAY STAR NEWS

FIRST LADY INVITES JASON COLLINS FOR STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS

After a joint fundraiser for the Democratic Party last year, it was already clear that Michelle Obama had hit it off with Jason Collins. Now Collins will be among the first lady's special guests during the State of the Union address this week.

The White House this morning announced Collins will be among those seated in the box with the first lady and Dr. Jill Biden — a spot often used to honor Americans whose example the president wants to highlight. A news release touted Collins as the first man to come out in major pro team sport and recalled President Obama saying he "couldn't be prouder" of Collins.

For her part, Michelle Obama tweeted congratulations when Collins' news first broke. ("We've got your back!" she wrote.) And the first lady unloaded praise for Collins when both appeared at the Democratic National Committee’s LGBT Leadership gala in New York's Upper East Side held in May.

“Jason, we are so proud of you," she said during the event. "We are proud of your talent, your character, your courage, and we are so proud. He has just made the difference in the lives of so many of our young people. So let’s give one more round of applause to our friend, Jason Collins. We love you so much, Jason.”

Collins was equally as complimentary, according to an ABC News report. He said the first lady is “a steadfast champion for LGBT families” and that she and President Obama send the message that “the most important thing that defines a family is love."

SOURCE: THE ADVOCATE

JASON COLLINS VOTED SECOND MOST INFLUENTIAL MAN

AskMen.com, a leading men’s lifestyle website with 17 million monthly readers, has just released its eighth annual Top 49 Most Influential Men list. Sorry, you didn't make it.

Why 49 and not 50? Don't ask.

Elon Musk, founder of SpaceX and co-founder of Tesla Motors and PayPal, takes top honors on the poll, which was determined by more than 100,000 voters. NBA hero Jason Collins, who made history earlier this year when he became the first male U.S. pro athlete to come out as gay while still an active player, took the No. 2 spot, topping dudes like Drake, Peyton Manning, Jimmy Fallon, Bryan Cranston, Kanye West, Jay-Z, and LeBron James.

The bad news? A No. 11, Vladimir Putin beat President Barack Obama at No. 17.

Find more info on this year’s honorees on AskMen.com.

SOURCE: GAY DOT NET

SPORTS STARS SPEAK OUT AGAINST HOMOPHOBIA @ UN HUMAN RIGHTS DAY

UNITED NATIONS — Former professional basketball player Jason Collins and tennis great Martina Navratilova on Tuesday urged world sports bodies like the International Olympic Committee and FIFA to take gay rights into consideration when awarding major sporting events.

The two openly gay athletes spoke at a special United Nations event celebrating International Human Rights Day.

They focused in part on the upcoming Winter Olympics inRussia, which passed a law this summer banning homosexual “propaganda.” The law has drawn international condemnation and sparked calls for a boycott, though no nations have threatened to pull their athletes.

Navratilova, who lost lucrative endorsements when she came out in 1981, said she doesn’t support boycotts of any kind. But she said the IOC is “putting its head in the sand” and criticized FIFA, the world soccer body, for awarding the 2022 World Cup to Qatar.

“Nobody’s talking about Qatar and the Wo rld Cup. You can get a jail term there,” she said of consensual gay sex in the Persian Gulf nation. In six other countries, including Saudi Arabia, simply being gay is punishable by death, she said.

“Gays and lesbians seem to be the last group it’s seen as OK to pick on,” she said.

The two athletes also joked about how times have changed for gay rights in the U.S.

“When Collins came out this year, he got a phone call from President Obama congratulating him,” Navratilova said. “Well, in 1981, Reagan was president. I didn’t get that phone call.”

“It’s funny, right before President Obama, it was Oprah Winfrey,” Collins added. “Like a surreal experience.”

Collins almost shyly thanked Navratilova for being so outspoken.

“I’m sitting next to one of my idols,” he said.

North America’s major pro sports leagues are still awaiting an openly gay athlete. Collins, 35, was prepared to become the first when he came out after the NBA regular season had ended. The aging reserve player and free agent has not been signed by another team, though he says he stays in shape and hopes to return to the NBA.

Collins said the league is doing a “great job changing the culture of sport” in regard to gay players.

In a recorded message, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon also praised straight athletes who speak out against homophobia. “They understand an abuse against any of us is an affront to all,” he said.

In a related event Tuesday, U.S. ambassador Samantha Power called the Russian law “as outrageous as it is dangerous.”

Power, who was meeting with dozens of gay activists from around the world, said 78 countries still have laws that criminalize consensual sex between adults.

“To deny gays and lesbians the right to live freely … is in fact barbarian,” Power said.

This year was the first time the U.N. held a ministerial meeting on LGBT issues, with Secretary of State John Kerry attending. “Tha t’s progress,” Power said.

Russian journalist and gay right activist Masha Gessen then read part of the Russian law on gay “propaganda” and said, “It actually enshrines second-class citizenship and makes it a crime to talk about equality.”

Zambian activist Juliet Mphande listened to Gessen’s comments and said, “I imagine Russia to be an African country right now.” She said at least six people from her country’s gay community had been arrested this year.

SOURCE: LGBTQ NATION

DESPITE NOT HAVING A TEAM JASON COLLINS COUNTS HIS BLESSINGS

This is the first fall in more than a decade that Jason C0llins has not been on the roster of an NBA team.

But no need to feel sorry for him.

'Whatever your situation you try to have a positive outlook on so everything is a blessing. I couldn't be happier and more content with being able to live an authentic and genuine life,' Collins told Gay Star News over the weekend.

'Life is good.'

Collins made headlines last spring when after finishing the season with the Washington Wizards, Collins came out publicly as a gay man in a Sports Illustrated cover story. He soon got a call from President Obama and appeared on TV with Oprah Winfrey.

But no NBA team called with an offer to play.

Collins is keeping in shape in the hopes a team will still need a back-up center. He's also become involved in the LGBTI community and on Saturday (9 November) he was honored with the LA Gay & Lesbian Center's National Vanguard Award.

He described himself as ‘extremely humbled’ by the award and ‘amazed and awed’ by the services The Center provides – especially its services for homeless LGBT youth.

‘The Center is here to support and care about the entire community – anyone with a heartbeat and a need,' he said in a brief but emotional speech.

'There’s nothing more powerful than when someone is seen, heard and accepted for being who they truly are. I lived for 33 years not having shown my true self with anyone – I thought I’d have to go to the grave with it. Not in my wildest dreams did I think my life would transform.’

Before taking the stage, Collins told GSN it was exciting to be getting his award on the same week that Illinois and Hawaii approved gay marriage and the US Senate passed the Employment Non-Discrimination Act.

'Progress is being made and it's encouraging more and more people to live their true and authentic life and know they will be supported by the entire country,' he said. 'When you do come forward not only will you have the support of your community but also your government.'

At Saturday's Gay & Lesbian Center gala in downtown Los Angeles, Collins was the center of attention and surrounded by such celebrities as Lance Bass and the cast of the Netflix hit show Orange is the New Black.

While support from other gays and from well-known straight allies is not surprise, Collins said when he first went public about being gay, one of the people he got support from was retired NBA player Tim Hardaway.

In 2007, Hardaway said 'I hate gay people' when discussing the coming out of former NBA pro John Amaechi.

'He called me early on and was extremely supportive and happy for me.,' Collins said. 'I have to admit I wasn't expecting that but it shows that people's perceptions can change over time. He was in a different place. It's really cool to see that progress is being made on an individual level, social level, government level.'

And yet the homophobia in pro sports persists with just last month former NFL pro Dexter Manley using an anti-gay slur to describe retired Dallas Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman.

'There are still people in this country who will say things about skin color so it will never truly go away,' Collins said of bigotry. 'But overall, progress if being made.'

'There are still people in this country who will say things about skin color so it will never truly go away but overall, progress if being made.'

SOURCE: GAY STAR NEWS

AS TRAINING CAMPS BEGIN, GAY NBA PLAYER JASON COLLINS DOESN'T HAVE ANYONE TO PLAY FOR

Jason Collins was enthusiastically cheered last weekend by thousands of sports fans for his status as an openly gay pro basketball player.

But the cheers were not coming from the crowd at an NBA game, they were from a baseball crowd at Dodgers Stadium in Los Angeles on a special LGBT night. Collins threw out the first pitch.

While the 34-year-old veteran has been treated like a celebrity since his very public coming out on the cover of Sports Illustrated last April, no NBA team has shown interest in having him join their roster.

The teams returned to action in training camps this week and Collins, a free agent, had still not received the call he was hoping for all summer long.

The 2013-14 season begins later this month. Collins can still be called by a team up until the league's trade deadline in February.

Unless that happens, he will not have the historic distinction of being the first active openly gay NBA player. But Collins will still be part of a very exclusive group since retired NBA player John Amaechi is the only other man to have played in the league to later come out as gay.

'The unpleasant truth about Collins' job prospects is that several teams don't think he can make a telling on-court contribution any more ... and felt that way long before his announcement,' ESPN.com's Mark Stein writes in a column this week.

Collins had just completed the season playing for the Boston Celtics then the Washington Wizards when his story went public. He was a free agent who had played in only 38 games the entire season.

In the days after his coming out, Collins received a call with congratulations from President Barack Obama and did several high-profile television interviews including one with Oprah Winfrey.

Amid all of the hoopla, he continued to train and wait for a team to add him to their roster.

'I know that at this point in my career, you remain hopeful that there’s a job and an opportunity waiting for you once teams start to fill out their rosters,' he told The New York Times last summer.

Collins had not been a starter for the last six years and had become accustomed to waiting until the late summer to find out the next season's assignment - but he had never done so as a celebrity.

Stein speculates that this celebrity is what might be partly working against Collins right now.

He writes: 'Having Collins on the roster from Day 1 turns media day into Jason Collins day and creates an undeniable distraction in October at a time when obsessive coaches don't want to think about anything other than reinforcing the ins and outs of their offensive and defensive systems.'

SOURCE: GAY STAR NEWS

JASON COLLINS INTRODUCING MACKLEMORE & RYAN LEWIS @ MTVs VMAs

Basketball player Jason Collins will be on the Video Music Awards' stage tonight.

The first active NBA player to come out gay will introduce Mackelmore and Ryan Lewis. According to the site NewNowNext, the hip-hop duo will perform Same Love.

This will be the first time Mackelmore and Lewis will appear on the MTV award show. Joining them on stage will be Seattle-based singer-songwriter Mary Lambert.

The VMAs will air tonight (25 August) at 9pm, local time, from Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

Same Love is nominated in the Best Video with a Social Message category.

Collins, who came out in a Sports Illustrated cover story, is still without a contract. However, NBC News reports, the odds are in his favor to be with a team before training camp starts next month.

In an interview with Gay Star News, culture blogger Juice with Junior noted how the cultural landscape has changed in the past decade for LGBT equality.

'Ten years ago this pairing would have been a punch line,' Junior said. 'Mackelmore and Lewis are popular and so is Collins. It will be just be another part of the broadcast. That's a sign of great progress.'

SOURCE: GAY STAR NEWS

¿WILL THE NBA'S FIRST OPENLY GAY PLAYER EVEN BE PLAYING NEXT SEASON?

Jason Collins may have made history this spring by becoming the first active NBA player in history to come out as gay but there is a question of whether he will even be active next season.

Collins, 34, had just completed the season playing for the Boston Celtics then the Washington Wizards when his story went public on the cover of Sports Illustrated. He was a free agent who had played in only 38 games the entire season.

'I look at it, honestly, like any other free agency in the past several years, where I know I have to stay patient,' Collins tells The New York Times.

'I know that at this point in my career, you remain hopeful that there’s a job and an opportunity waiting for you once teams start to fill out their rosters,' he says.

Collins has not been a starter for the last six years and has become accustomed to waiting until the late summer to find out the next season's assignment. Last year, Boston signed him on 31 July and in 2009, the Atlanta Hawks signed him to a one-year deal on 2 September.

'It won’t weigh on me,' Collins tells The Times. 'I’ve been blessed. I’ve played 12 years in this league. Not a lot of professional athletes, not a lot of basketball players, can say that they’ve played for over a decade.'

He adds: 'But at the same point, I still feel like, just like a lot of other professional athletes, that I still can contribute to a team and I still have something left to go out and prove.'

SOURCE: GAY NEWS STAR