In an interview from earlier this month Tony Dungy was asked a question about Michael Sam, who is most widely known for being the first openly gay player in any major sport. The quote attributed to Dungy refers to the NFL draft in which Sam was selected by the St. Louis Rams in the 7th and final round - “I wouldn’t have taken him, not because I don’t believe Michael Sam should have a chance to play, but I wouldn’t want to deal with all of it. It’s not going to be totally smooth … things will happen.”
By in large comments like this from athletes and others in the sporting world should be taken with a grain of salt since for most socio political topics are not their area of expertise. Tony Dungy however has proven to a astute advocate for acceptance in a way that makes these comments seem out of step. This stature along with the perceived hypocrisy of his statement has caused a greater interest from sports writer than most sports figures would typically elicit.
A good example of the analysis of Tony Dungy's comments comes from cover32.com writer Jeremy Mackinder who covers the Detroit Lions and discusses how out of character these remarks are while also addressing the importance of Michael Sam. The article also includes a link to a statement released by Dungy attempting to clarify his original words.
While there seems to be no ill intent there is an inherent issue with Dungy's position that is pervasive in politics and political commentary today. Given that Tony Dungy is not gay and doesn't appear to have any connection to the LGBT community his comments suggest he doesn't fully appreciate their fight or the gravity of Michael Sam's situation.
It seems unlikely that Tony Dungy would have had such a casual response were the question "should the Brooklyn Dodgers sign Jackie Robinson". Was Jackie Robinson a distraction to the team? Absolutely. Did he deserve a chance to play for a MLB team? Absolutely. Tony Dungy also indicated that he would draft Tim Tebow with a top 10 pick in the NFL draft. Apparently media attention and the distraction the comes with it wasn't a concern when it came to Tim Tebow.
As Dungy's own clarification comments state "playing in the NFL is, and should be, about merit." Most publications had Michael Sam as a solid mid round prospect before his announcement which suggests regardless of the potential distraction Sam was worth drafting or at the very least getting shot to make a team.
It is also possible that Tony Dungy's faith played a small part in his thought process since the religious community have been laggards when it comes to gay rights. Unfortunately Dungy's position, intentional or not, is one that we have seen multiple times in the political arena. History shows that, as a party, Republicans have been far less accepting on issues like same sex marriage however top Republicans like Dick Cheney and Rob Portman were some of the first Republican political advocates for increased equality for the LGBT community. Not surprisingly both men also happen to have gay children.
The problem is that for many people it is easy to believe the worst about a group of people you don't know or understand. However once faced with the reality that being gay doesn't make a person any less human, it doesn't make a person a deviant, it doesn't make a person a sinner, and it doesn't make a person less deserving of love most people recognize the error of their previously uninformed position.
In the end being gay is just another part of who Michael Sam is and in the grand scheme of things it is only relevant in a small portion of the decisions he makes on a daily basis. The fact that our society is at a place in time where a seemingly accepting man like Tony Dungy would consider who one of his players chooses to love based on how the media would react to it says a lot about how much further we have to go.
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