Gay rights activist and Baltimore Ravens linebacker Brendan Ayanbadejo played San Francisco 49ers cornerback and homophobe Chris Culliver at the Super Bowl last Sunday, on more than one level. Ayanbadejo spent a good part of his Super Bowl week spreading words of equality to make up for Culliver’s comments on Artie Lange’s radio show. “I don’t do the gay guys. I don’t do that,” said Culliver. He suggested keeping homosexuality closeted until “ten years later after that.”
Culliver later released a statement apologizing for his comments on Lange’s show.
“The derogatory comments I made yesterday were a reflection of thoughts in my head, but they are not how I feel. It has taken me seeing them in print to realize that they are hurtful and ugly. Those discriminating feelings are truly not in my heart. Further, I apologize to those who I have hurt and offended, and I pledge to learn and grow from this experience,” his apology read.
Culliver’s hilariously sheepish retreat is so generic and backwards; he should have just stuck to his guns. At least at that point he would be a proud hate-monger with dignity and integrity. Instead, he issued an apology that doesn’t make sense (how are the thoughts in your head about how you feel about another person’s sexuality, which you expressed aloud on a national broadcast, not the feelings in your heart, outside of the literal sense?) just to stay on the thinking world’s good side.
There was a surprising backlash against the 49er that led to the Hallmark card apology. However, homophobia is actually common in the NFL according to many players. Well, homophobia is often considered a side-effect of latent homosexuality. One would have to think that a male homophobe that plays a full-contact sport (while wearing tights) in a league that doesn’t allow women and undresses and presumably showers with other men would almost certainly fall into that consideration. There would be nothing wrong with that. It’s just an observation.
Those who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones.