Apparently we were supposed to jump for joy and adulation when Michael Sam was drafted into the NFL in the 7th round by the St. Louis Rams. Fans and players evidently were supposed to applaud and affirm Sam kissing his boyfriend after receiving news. The kiss was aired by ESPN.
Miami Dolphins Safety Don Jones didn’t get the memo.
He tweeted a negative reaction to the kiss. Because of this he was fined and suspended until he completes “educational training.
But he’s being fined and suspended until he’s “reeducated” because of a two word reaction on Twitter. His first tweet was “omg.” Frankly I’d be more upset because of his use of the phrase “omg” because he’s using God’s name in vain than why he said it. When asked if he tweeted that because of the kissing did he unleash some “homophobic” rant or use some offensive slur? No he said, “horrible.” He said “horrible,” because many of us believe it is and we’d prefer not to watch (or have to explain it to our kids).
Did he unleash some “homophobic” rant or use some offensive slur? No he said, “horrible.”
Apparently if he sent encouragement in the form of a Vine video of him applauding or a picture of him giving a thumbs-up on Twitter all would have been right with the world.
I didn’t see the kiss because I wasn’t watching the draft. I really don’t care about the draft, I’m not a die-hard NFL fan. His pick was not earth-shattering news to me. He obviously has skills. It’s no surprise that the St. Louis Rams picked a guy who was an all-American defensive-end and the defensive player of the year in the SEC. As I said on Friday if he has the needed skills and he can perform he should be drafted. His draft pick should be based on merit – period – not based on his sexual preference.
I highly doubt he’s the first gay player in the NFL. He’s just the first one to make a public statement about it. Matt Walsh wrote a brilliant piece today that I encourage you to read. He made the following point:
Your sexuality is none of my business, right? Yes. Fine. Sounds good to me.
But this “none of my business” shtick is a two way street, friend. What exactly does it mean for a thing to be “none of my business” when you’re holding a press conference and proclaiming it to the entire world?
“Hey, this is personal, man. That’s why I’m throwing a parade, alerting the media, issuing a press release, having t-shirts printed, and booking an interview on 20/20.”
Personal business. You keep using that phrase. I don’t think it means what you think it means.
Michael Sam, apparently, ‘came out’ to his teammates a year ago. By all accounts, they took it well, nobody really cared, and everything continued on as normal. Sam wasn’t hiding in fear and he wasn’t being forced to suppress or disguise anything. But then, mere months before the draft, he decided to declare himself to ESPN and the New York Times.
When you make your personal business public for all the world to see don’t expect applause. You are not entitled to applause. You are not entitled to affirmation. Some will, but some won’t… that’s just how it goes.
But apparently they believe they are and now NFL players are expected to respond positively or shut up.
In the meantime many of us are wondering when the fines and suspensions are coming for NFL players who criticized Tim Tebow for his faith. Not that I really think they should, but even if I did I wouldn’t hold my breath because no one is entitled to applause.