The presence or absence of gays and lesbians is not the issue. Any label applied to an entire group wrongly stereotypes every member of the group and is patently unethical. All football players are not dumb. All female athletes are not lesbians. All male dancers, artists and designers are not gay.
The bottom line is that we are educated people who must understand how homophobia is “used,” by those who would like to destroy the reputation of a program or school or coach or to remove the opportunity to play or work. What is important is that we focus on people’s strengths rather than their weaknesses and respect all people who are honest and who, by their actions and words, respect the rights of others.
It is also important for us to distinguish between homophobia and sexual harassment. We cannot and should not discriminate on the basis of sexual preference in the provision of any educational program or activity. Conversely we must oppose and punish sexual harassment at all times.
Any male or female student, whether they participate in athletics or not, should not be subject to unwanted sexual advances—from a member of either sex. In fact, the possibility of being propositioned by a lesbian student-athlete is not the only uncomfortable situation that female student-athletes may face. Sexual harassment by male students or male student-athletes are other situations that occur even more frequently to female students. Sexual harassment or even sexual assault by male coaches of female student-athletes is a significant problem in school and open amateur sport settings across the country that often goes unreported.
Rather than focus on the presence or absence of lesbians, perhaps parents and coaches should focus on helping young women student-athletes to know that they can turn down any unwanted advances and should not put up with sexual harassment from any source—male or female.
The Women’s Sports Foundation is particularly concerned with this issue because homophobia may keep girls and women away from the positive benefits of sports. Sports are too important to the physical, psychological and sociological well-being of our children to have it only benefit our sons. Girls and women who play sports have more confidence, higher levels of self-esteem, stronger self-images and lower levels of depression. High school girls who play sports are less likely to be involved in an unwanted pregnancy, less likely to be involved in drugs and more likely to graduate from high school. Sport is where boys have traditionally learned about teamwork, goal-setting and the pursuit of excellence in performance—critical skills necessary for success in a workplace where both our sons and daughters need an equal chance to excel.
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