Despite major advances in gay rights over the last three decades, homophobia remains a persistent problem.

“That is certainly true in the sports world,” says Helen Carroll, athletic diversity specialist for the National Center for Lesbian Rights and consultant for its Homophobia in Sports Project.

NCLR, based in San Francisco, began its Homophobia in Sports Project two years ago with the goal of eradicating anti-gay bias in athletics through education, outreach and publicity.

Carroll addresses the Atlanta Executive Network’s monthly meeting next week. She was invited to speak after AEN began an initiative this year to increase the awareness and participation of women in the gay business group, according to David Payne, AEN president.

A former basketball coach and college athletic director, NCLR hired Carroll to lead the project when it was established. But even with public education in the last two years about the contributions that gays make to sports as equal players, there is still more work to be done, Carroll says.

“They need to be recognized as such and not discriminated against,” she says.

Sports is commonly viewed as being one of the last bastions of masculinity in contemporary society, and despite the growing number of gay and women’s organizations and teams, the world of sports seems to be resolutely steeped in traditional masculine codes.

According to Carroll, homophobia can be attributed partly to a combination of those codes as well as gender codes.

“Look at the top leaders in sports,” Carroll says. “You’re not going to see too many women coaching pro football or pro men’s basketball. If you look at athletic directors across the country, it is still male, so it is kind of a good ol’ boys’ club.”

ALTHOUGH FORMER PRO football player Esera Tualo and former Major League Baseball player Billy Bean came out as gay after retiring, openly gay professional athletes — especially men — remain rare.

“Sports culture hasn’t come far enough for other people to come out,” Carroll says. “With men in sports, there’s still the component of violence. There’s differences with men and women coming out in sports. With men, their roommates don’t know, their teammates don’t know, their coaches don’t know. …They definitely play the game of having girlfriends. That’s a very stressful job.”

When it comes to lesbian athletes, especially those who are older, there wasn’t always freedom to be open about their sexual orientation or find allies.

“They learned the way to survive and get anything done for women’s sports was like ‘don’t ask, don’t tell,’” Carroll says. “We had a group of people we could talk to and knew, and we would feel maybe not so isolated because people would know. But there’s a big difference between people knowing and being verbal talking about it.”

As for lesbians’ place in sports today, circumstances aren’t necessarily better, but they are beginning to score points in the game.

Carroll points to the case of Ashly Massey. The eighth-grade student from the small California town of Banning made national news when the American Civil Liberties Union and NCLR filed suit against the Banning Unified School District on Massey’s behalf last year.

After Massey revealed in gym class that she was a lesbian, she was subsequently ostracized from class for nearly two weeks, spending the duration in the school principal’s office.

“We’re still in court with it and getting closer to settling,” Carroll says.

Massey will likely play sports again, but her case shows how homophobia can drive young lesbians out of athletics completely, according to Carroll.

More coaches and school officials are actively seeking ways to educate themselves and their players about acceptance and inclusion of gays, but there are still people who don’t embrace the notion, Carroll says.

That resistance contributes to many players’ fears, so they remain closeted, she says.

“They may think that everything is okay as long as nobody knows,” Carroll says. “But the ability they have once they’re able to feel right is much better, I think.”

MORE INFO
Helen Carroll
Atlanta Executive Network
Sept. 18
Doors open 5:45 p.m., Program 6:45 p.m.
Sheraton Midtown Atlanta at Colony Square
188 14th St. at Peachtree
$10 members, $20 guests, students - free
404-724-9008
www.aen.org