WekiileaksAviciiNewAlbum

  • Subscribe to our RSS feed.
  • Twitter
  • StumbleUpon
  • Reddit
  • Facebook
  • Digg

Saturday, 10 August 2013

I'm An Openly Gay Gold Medalist and I Reject the Sochi Olympics Boycott

Posted on 14:38 by Unknown

As an openly gay Olympic four-time gold medalist, you might expect that I would be in favor of joining prominent LGBT activists in calling for America to boycott the 2014 Winter Olympic games in Sochi, Russia.

After all, Russia’s recently passed laws cracking down on gays and lesbians violate everything I’ve spent my career fighting for; namely, love and respect for all people. It was hard enough to compete as a gay, closeted athlete in the United States. It’s hard to imagine what it must be like for gay athletes in Russia, knowing that if you were to come out, you would be considered a criminal and could lose everything you’ve worked your entire life to achieve.

READ: Russia's Anti-Gay Law, Spelled Out in Plain English

But while I’m strongly opposed to Vladimir Putin’s treatment of the LGBT community and will fight hard to reverse these heinous laws, I do not support a U.S. boycott of the Sochi Games.

Boycotting sends the wrong message and will only harm the hard-working athletes set to compete in the 2014 Olympics, not the Russian government itself. I know from personal experience. My first Olympics I won Silver at age 16, and then in 1980, at the height of my diving career, President Jimmy Carter opted to boycott the 1980 Olympics in Moscow as a method of protesting the Soviet invasion in Afghanistan. The toll on fellow athletes and me was devastating. We had trained our entire lives for that one moment. Fortunately, I was lucky enough to continue my diving career and return to compete and win two gold medals in the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles (an Olympics the Eastern Block counties boycotted) and repeat two gold medals in 1988 Olympics in Seoul. But, other athletes were not so lucky. Some of those who missed the 1980 games never had another chance to shine. This boycott hurt the wrong people, taking a toll on prominent athletes more than the country it targeted.

I’m concerned the same would be true today. There are far too many athletes for whom the 2014 Sochi Olympics represents their only chance at success. A boycott will only hurt these athletes’ careers.

There’s a better way to speak out against President Putin and call out his bigotry for exactly what it is: speaking up for equal rights and educating people around the world about the persistence of homophobia. I’ve spent my post-diving career doing just this. I’ve promoted HIV/AIDS awareness, defended the civil liberties of the LGBT community, and taken a stand against “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” Rather than boycott, I, along with several amazing organizations including Athlete Ally and All Out, plan to use the Sochi Games as a teachable moment for the world.

Along with other athletes, I will continue to speak up about these disgusting laws which discriminate against gays and lesbians. I’ve signed this petition aimed directly at the International Olympic Committee, urging the IOC to condemn Russia’s anti-gay laws before the Olympics.

As athletes, the most valuable thing we can do is send a strong, unified message to Russia and its president that we will not stand for this cruel and repressive treatment. We will not stop until gay people in Russia are treated with the dignity and respect they deserve.

I'm An Openly Gay Gold Medalist and I Reject the Sochi Olympics BoycottAthlete Ally has teamed up with All Out to launch a petition calling on world leaders to speak out against Russia's anti-gay laws. 335,000 people have already signed on. Find out more here.

Athlete Ally is a non profit organization dedicated to challenging homophobia and transphobia in sports. Follow them on Twitter: @athleteally, on Facebook, & visit: www.athleteally.org



Click here to view original article
Email ThisBlogThis!Share to XShare to FacebookShare to Pinterest
Posted in | No comments
Newer Post Older Post Home

0 comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)

Popular Posts

  • The 4 Stages Of Student Loan Grief
    When Congress failed to act on July 1 , federal subsidized Stafford student loan interest rates doubled from...
  • How Abuse Survivors Can Protect Themselves On Facebook
    Just as Twitter has been working to amend its privacy features in light of violent and threatening attacks on some prom...
  • The Democratic Fairy Tale About Detroit That the Media is Feeding You
    The past week, a couple of people in the media threw around the comedic notion that the Detroit bankruptcy...
  • The Economic Reality That Barack Obama Clearly Doesn't Understand
    President Barack Obama’s recent speech on the economy demonstrates a stunning lack of economic knowledge. By focusi...
  • Chinese Doctors Take Bribes All the Time, But Only Because They Have to
    Over the past couple of weeks, China has extended its anti-corruption campaign to the pharmaceutical industr...
  • Liberty-Loving Members Of Congress Silent On Bradley Manning
    Paul, Wyden, and Amash take a pass. Love the leak, hate the leaker? Army Pfc. Bradley Manning is escort...
  • TSA "VIPR Teams" Will Soon Be Patting You Down Outside the Airport
    Those who complain about Transportation Security Administration (TSA) screenings at the airport will now find similar grounds...
  • How to Survive a D.C. Summer If You're Not Interested in Politics
    So you’re in D.C. for the summer. Chances are you’ve hit all the tourist sites in a day, learned to use the Smithso...
  • You're Not a Grown-Up Until You Stop Texting Your Mom
    The Wall Street Journal kicked up a bit of a fuss with last week's “ millennials text mommy ” article. The gist of t...
  • Latin America's Most Successful Politician? It's Pope Francis
    Jorge Mario Bergoglio, a humble seminary student from Buenos Aires, was unaware while he was studying theology that his revol...

Blog Archive

  • ▼  2013 (500)
    • ▼  August (414)
      • U.S. Sanctions On Iran Are So Bad, Women Have Run ...
      • National Zoo Tiger Cubs Are a Reminder Of How Much...
      • Why Are Chinese Workers At Apple Suppliers Foxconn...
      • What One Year At PolicyMic Has Taught Me About Growth
      • 10 Memes to Help You Celebrate Eid
      • How Many Terror Threats Does the U.S. Get Every Day?
      • Mic Check: This Photo Perfectly Sums Up Obama’s Re...
      • I'm An Openly Gay Gold Medalist and I Reject the S...
      • Not Even Promising 50 Years Of Secrecy Can Get Con...
      • Lady Gaga's 'Burqa' is Supposed to Empower Muslim ...
      • Why I'm Proud to Be a Part Of Know Your IX
      • Wait Until You Read How Republicans Just Wasted Ev...
      • Them's Fightin' Words: The Case For Bringing Back ...
      • 3 New Yorkers Who Are Asking Forgiveness — And Doi...
      • French Farmers Protest EU By Destroying 100,000 Eg...
      • Here's What Obama Had to Say on Jay Leno Last Night
      • Inside America's Second Guantanamo: Bagram Airfiel...
      • Obama Leno YouTube Video: The President Says He Ha...
      • Two Males Arrested in Rehtaeh Parsons Case
      • China is Forcing 250 Million Rural Dwellers to Rel...
      • Ebony Magazine Cover Shows We Can't Give Up On You...
      • Guess Which Continent is Home to 14 of the 15 Most...
      • Gay Couple Forced to Back Of the Bus Gets An Apolo...
      • Congress Might Actually Fix a Billion-Dollar Problem
      • One Direction Fans Are Fuming Over This Harry Styl...
      • Why Cory Booker is Going to Be New Jersey's Next S...
      • Women Without Children Aren't Selfish — They're Smart
      • This Ohio Town Will Discriminate Against Minority ...
      • Boycotting the 2014 Olympics is Pointless For Gay ...
      • Sydney Leathers Will Teach You How to Bag a Weiner
      • Will Mexico's New Energy Plan Make It the Next Kuw...
      • TSA "VIPR Teams" Will Soon Be Patting You Down Out...
      • If You've Communicated With Someone Outside Of the...
      • Florida's Execution Of Mentally-Ill Mass Murderer ...
      • Latin America's Most Successful Politician? It's P...
      • How a 7% Cut to a U.S. Agency's Budget Can Take Do...
      • FEC Official Don McGahn Admits IRS Scandal Might B...
      • Detroit's Bankruptcy Could Spread Nationwide if We...
      • Seth Meyers On "Late Night" Just More Of the Same
      • 8 Coming-of-Age Films Every Millennial Needs to Watch
      • How to Get Over Your Ex in the Facebook Era
      • You're Not a Grown-Up Until You Stop Texting Your Mom
      • How Abuse Survivors Can Protect Themselves On Face...
      • PolicyMic is Debating the "B" Word This Week – Whe...
      • Can Shinzo Abe Make Japan a Superpower Again?
      • For the Simple Crime of Smoking Marijuana, the Gov...
      • How to Get Over Your Ex in the Facebook Era
      • Open Mic With Eliot Spitzer, Candidate For New Yor...
      • Happy Anniversary, Myanmar
      • Republican Threat to Shut Down Government Over Oba...
      • Polyphonic Spree Review: 'Yes It's True' Is the Ha...
      • Immigration Reform 2013: Why Did the Media Ignore ...
      • Social Security Begins Making Payments To Some Sam...
      • Can Billionaires Like Jeff Bezos and John Henry Sa...
      • Obama: "We Are Not Going To Completely Eliminate T...
      • How Hollywood Helped Hitler — and How It's Helping...
      • Obama: "I Don't Think Mr. Snowden Was A Patriot"
      • You Won't Believe What Just Happened On Reddit
      • Obama: "Mixed Success" With Putin
      • Name Which Democrat Said This: "We’re Not Broke, T...
      • Obama Opposes Olympics Boycott
      • Obama Administration Launching NSA Transparency We...
      • Why Bad TV Succeeds But Good TV Fails
      • Republican Mayoral Candidate Doesn't Want To Expla...
      • Smoking Is Not a Right
      • 5 Reasons Conservatives Don't Believe Climate Chan...
      • In Open Letter, California Sen. Barbara Boxer Tell...
      • Wisconsin Official Fired After Saying Undocumented...
      • What a Free Market Approach to Education Would Loo...
      • Congressman Suggests "Arab Persons" Might Disguise...
      • Congress' Iran Policy: Short Sighted and Irrational
      • Insane Confrontation At Oklahoma Congressman's Tow...
      • The TSA Is Turning Us Into a Stop-And-Frisk Nation
      • Terry McAuliffe Dismisses Reporter's Question On T...
      • Dronestagram Brings Drone Strikes Abroad A Little ...
      • Is Jay-Z Right About the Middle Class?
      • TSA Patdowns Coming to a Concert Near You
      • How A Democrat Dodges A Question About Wall Street...
      • International Olympics Committee Asks Russia To Pr...
      • The Fast Food Strikes Are Really About Civil Rights
      • How Jackie Chan Became The Most Hated Celeb On The...
      • Yemen Terror Threats Actually Come On Tail Of Huge...
      • Watch Anthony Weiner Struggle To Take A Reporter W...
      • Kristin Davis is Out Of Comptrol As NYC Race Gets ...
      • Democratic Gun Politics In Arkansas Senate Race Ar...
      • 5 Ways to Save Money On Health Care Costs
      • Russian U.N. Ambassador Speaks Out On Anti-LGBT Laws
      • RNC Chairman is Insane to Threaten NBC and CNN Ove...
      • 4 Ways Your Boss Will Set You Up For Failure
      • 5 Netflix Features That We Desperately Need
      • Thought Republicans Were Done With the War On Wome...
      • McDonald's Big Mac Study is a Prime Example of Wha...
      • MLB Suspensions List: 13 Baseball Players Busted F...
      • The 113th Congress Takes "Dysfunctional" to a Whol...
      • Who Does Desiree Hartstock Pick? The Sad Reality O...
      • Sean Sasser, AIDS Activist Known From MTV's "The R...
      • Obama Campaign Mastermind Jim Messina Now Working ...
      • Can Stay-At-Home Governor Andrew Cuomo Go National?
      • Burka Avenger: Can This Superhero Save Pakistan?
      • Ken Cuccinelli Joked About Drinking With Ted Kenne...
    • ►  July (86)
Powered by Blogger.

About Me

Unknown
View my complete profile