Louisiana State University (LSU)
running back Alfred Blue has apologized for describing gay players as
“sissies.”
In remarks to The
Daily Reveille, LSU's student newspaper, Blue, who turns 22
next week, said that it would be “a shock to everybody” if a
football player came out gay.
“Football is supposed to be this
violent sport – this aggressive sport that grown men are supposed
to play,” Blue said.
“Ain't no little boys out here between them lines. So if you gay,
we look at you as a sissy. You know? Like, how you going to say you
can do what we do and you want a man?”
He added that his team would likely
accept such a player: “It doesn't change how he contributes to the
team.”
On Friday, Blue issued an apology.
“I in no way meant to belittle any
person's way of life and feel that everyone deserves a chance to
become whatever they want to be. I told the reporter that if any
person can help contribute to the team,, then that is the bottom
line. I apologize if anyone was hurt by my comments and also to
everyone that I may have let down,” he said.
Blue made his comments as major
professional sports leagues and players are increasingly signaling that they
would accept an openly gay player
(Related: NHL
Commissioner Gary Bettman says hockey is for everyone, that includes
gays.)
Jim Mora, head football coach at the
University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), last week appeared in a
You Can Play Project video. The project's aim is to eliminate
homophobia in sports.
(Related: UCLA
student athletes, coaches stand up for gay players.)