Athlete Ally To Honor Yogi Berra

Next week Athlete Ally will hold its inaugural awards gala where baseball legend Yogi Berra will be among the honorees.

The event celebrates the pioneering actions by individuals and organizations in 2014 that helped create LGBT inclusive athletic environments and eliminate anti-LGBT prejudice. This first-of-its-kind event is an unprecedented LGBT-straight alliance embodying the Athlete Ally motto: Victory Through Unity. “I want to thank Athlete Ally for this honor,” said honoree Yogi Berra. “Baseball has always been an important part of my life. It teaches you how to challenge yourself and work as a team. No matter who you are, you should have that chance.” The Yogi Berra Museum & Learning Center and Athlete Ally have partnered on a series of leadership workshops as well as “Allyship,” an exhibit commemorating the athletes throughout history who have helped break barriers and change attitudes in society. The exhibit will be on display at the Action Awards. “I'm glad what Athlete Ally is doing, and proud our Museum & Learning Center teaches kids the same idea: respect the game, respect the other guy,” said Berra. “Back when I played and today, there's no place for discrimination in sports."

Berra is considered to be the greatest catcher in the history of baseball and appeared in 21 World Series as a player and manager, 13 times for the winning side. He is perhaps equally well known for his Yogiisms, expressions like, "Nobody goes there anymore, it's too crowded" and "It ain't over 'til it's over." My favorite was his reference to a hotel: "The towels were so thick, I could hardly close my suitcase." Tickets to Athlete Ally gala are at the top link.

Gay Bashing As An Olympic Sport

Via press release:

The video is the newest fundraising tactic by the Russia Freedom Fund, which aims to raise a million dollars by the end of the Olympics to support LGBT Russian activists. The video was produced by the Fair Games Project, an Indiegogo campaign launched by filmmaker Michael Rohrbaugh. The Fair Games Project also produced a powerful gun violence PSA that received significant attention last year. Athlete Ally is one of the producing partners on the video as well. Other fundraising tactics for the Russia Freedom Fund include a new national initiative called Uprising of Love: Pride House 2014, where restaurants, bars, and clubs will donate $1 of every drink sold from 9 p.m. to midnight to the fund. It takes place during tomorrow's Opening Ceremonies. In addition, Melissa Etheridge released a new single last week and will donate 100% of the profits to the fund. The significance of the Russia Freedom Fund is that it's the only way Americans can directly support LGBT Russian activists.

Wow.

Coalition Of Human Rights Groups: Sochi's Top Corporate Sponsors Must Speak Out

A coalition of 40 human rights groups have issued a joint letter to the top ten corporate sponsors of the Sochi Olympics which demands that they denounce Russia's abuses against LGBT people. Via press release:

Corporate sponsors of the Sochi Winter Olympics should act now to urge Russia to halt the rising tide of discrimination, harassment and threats against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people, 40 of the world’s leading human rights and LGBT groups said today, in an unusual joint open letter. The letter to all of the leading sponsors of the Sochi Olympics asks them to use their leverage as underwriters of the 2014 Winter Games in a variety of concrete ways.

The groups urged sponsors to speak out against Russia’s anti-gay “propaganda” law, which violates the Olympic Charter’s principle of non-discrimination, and to ask the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to undertake systemic reforms to monitor and prevent human rights abuses in future host countries. “Time is running out for the sponsors to take a clear stand in defense of Olympic values,” said Minky Worden, director of global initiatives at Human Rights Watch. “These companies are sponsoring an Oympics marred by ugly discrimination and serious rights abuses. They should speak out forcefully for equality and human rights.”

The joint letter is addressed to the 10 TOP Sponsors of the Sochi Games (members of “The Olympic Partner” (TOP) Program)--Atos, Coca Cola, Dow Chemical, General Electric, McDonald’s, Omega, Panasonic, Procter & Gamble, Samsung, and Visa. The Human Rights Campaign, Human Rights Watch and several other groups have engaged with the sponsors for nearly a year to urge them to act on abuses.

Among the groups in the coalition: Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, Human Rights Campaign, Athlete Ally, GLAAD, Family Equality Council, and the National Center for Lesbian Rights. Including in the requests for action, the letter asks that Sochi's top corporate sponsors address LGBT rights in their Olympic advertising.

Principle 6 Merchandise Is Now On Sale

A couple of months ago I reported that Athlete Ally and All Out were joining to offer gear that promotes Principle Six of the International Olympic Committee, which declares opposition to discrimination based on "race, religion, politics, gender or otherwise." Sales commenced today, reports the New York Times:

Andre Banks, executive director of All Out, said the merchandise “allows us to deliver the Principle 6 message on a scale that would make the campaign incredibly powerful.” American Apparel is to sell the merchandise online, beginning early Monday morning, and in stores around the world, beginning on Jan. 1. The line will include T-shirts, hoodies, hats, bags and underwear. The proceeds from the sales of the merchandise, minus the costs, “will go to benefit Russian L.G.B.T. groups in St. Petersburg and Moscow,” Mr. Banks said. Brian Ellner, a member of the Athlete Ally board, called the merchandise “a safe way for both fans and athletes to be visible and take a stand.” “That’s enormously important,” he added, “but our greatest challenge remains keeping the world focused on the real violence and intimidation the Russian L.G.B.T. community experiences.”

Over four dozen current and former Olympians, gay and straight, will promote the Principle Six gear.

Activists To IOC: Uphold Principle 6

Athlete Ally and All Out have joined forces to urge the International Olympic Committee to uphold its own Principle 6, which bans discrimination at the Olympic Games. The groups intend to make Principle 6 into a method of denouncing Russia's anti-gay laws without actually risking the arrests of attendees or the medals of supporting athletes at the Sochi Games. Frank Bruni explains at the New York Times:

Athlete Ally, working with a company called the Idea Brand and the professional football player Brendon Ayanbadejo, came up with and developed the notion of using the very name of that clause, along with a logo or logos that allude to it, as a rebuke of Russia’s laws and a method for athletes and fans to express their convictions. The symbol and the syllables P6, perhaps worn as a sticker, perhaps woven into clothing, could evolve into something along the lines of a Livestrong bracelet: a ubiquitous motif that doesn’t spell out a whole philosophy but has an unmistakable meaning and message. [snip] It’s an attempt to take full advantage of the world’s attention to the Winter Games without putting athletes at risk of censure. Maybe they hold up six fingers. Maybe their outfits include something with a P6 logo, several designs for which are being considered.

Read more about the Principle 6 campaign at the Athlete Ally site. Their petition is at the link.  Samples of the proposed Principle 6 logos are at the Times link.

Athlete Ally Slams IOC

"When given the choice to stand up and affirm Principle 6 of the Olympic charter, the IOC simply backed down. And so we now head into uncharted territory in Sochi, a place where LGBT people - and others trying to support them - will be subject to persecution because of these heinous laws passed after Sochi was named the host city. Ultimately, enduring this travesty may be the great legacy of the 2014 Games because the complete disconnect between the gay propaganda laws and the Olympic charter is galvanizing people to join together. And together, we can change a sports culture, which is apparently not only rife with homophobia, but in need of a serious priority check. Standing up for equality is always the right thing to do." - Hudson Taylor, founder of Athlete Ally, via press release.

Petition Of The Day

Athlete Ally has launched a petition campaign which demands that the International Olympic Committee chose Madrid as the host city of the 2020 Summer Games. Via press release:

On September 7 the IOC will choose the host city for the 2020 Olympic Games. Of the three finalists, Tokyo, Madrid and Istanbul, one city shines above as LGBT friendly. And only one of the respective countries - Japan, Spain, and Turkey - has equality under the law. “The IOC has an opportunity in September, when the choice for the next Olympic site is chosen. Madrid is the one candidate who is very open and accepting,” Athlete Ally Advisory Board member and Olympic legend Greg Louganis told MSNBC. “Take the Olympics to a place where its ideals and the Olympic movement can thrive.” "The Olympic movement will be strengthened if the IOC takes this opportunity to make a powerful statement for equality with the selection of Madrid in 2020,” said Athlete Ally Founder and Executive Director Hudson Taylor. “It's important for the IOC to recognize how much support exists for this human rights issue.

LGBT Groups Seek Designer For Pro-Gay Outfits To Be Worn At Sochi Olympics

Vogue reports:

Athlete Ally and All Out are searching for a high profile, international designer to create an anti-homophobia motif for Olympians to wear during Russia's Winter 2014 Olympics. The move challenges Russia's new laws against "gay propaganda", which were introduced in June and make it illegal to equate gay and heterosexual relationships, or to distribute information about gay rights. Both Lady Gaga and Stephen Fry have spoken out again the country's controversial laws this week, as Russia prepares to host the Winter Olympics next year. The design that the Olympians will wear during the forthcoming games should "powerfully reject the anti-gay propaganda law in solidarity with Russian groups demanding equal rights", said All Out co-founder and executive director Andre Banks.

RELATED: Earlier this year it was announced that Ralph Lauren will again design the official uniforms to be worn by American athletes at the Sochi Olympics. The company came under fire last year when it was revealed that the uniforms worn at the Beijing Olympics were manufactured in China.

Greg Louganis: Don't Boycott Sochi

Four-time Olympic gold medalist Greg Louganis has penned a lengthy column in which he objects to any boycott of the Sochi Olympics.  An excerpt:

Boycotting sends the wrong message and will only harm the hard-working athletes set to compete in the 2014 Olympics, not the Russian government itself. I know from personal experience. My first Olympics I won Silver at age 16, and then in 1980, at the height of my diving career, President Jimmy Carter opted to boycott the 1980 Olympics in Moscow as a method of protesting the Soviet invasion in Afghanistan. The toll on fellow athletes and me was devastating. We had trained our entire lives for that one moment. Fortunately, I was lucky enough to continue my diving career and return to compete and win two gold medals in the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles (an Olympics the Eastern Block counties boycotted) and repeat two gold medals in 1988 Olympics in Seoul. But, other athletes were not so lucky. Some of those who missed the 1980 games never had another chance to shine. This boycott hurt the wrong people, taking a toll on prominent athletes more than the country it targeted. I’m concerned the same would be true today. There are far too many athletes for whom the 2014 Sochi Olympics represents their only chance at success. A boycott will only hurt these athletes’ careers.

Louganis closes by noting that he is working with Athlete Ally and All Out to turn the Sochi Olympics into a "teachable moment" about the plight of LGBT people in Russia.

NFL Players Launch Pride Shirts

The NFL Players Association has launched a line of gay pride shirts on their website. All proceeds from the shirts will go to Athlete Ally, the anti-homophobia in sports organization founded by Hudson Taylor.  Via press release:

“I am extremely proud to be a part of this collaboration between Athlete Ally and the NFLPA’s One Team Shop to raise awareness both of Pride Month and the issue of tolerance and respect within the NFL itself,” said Chris Kluwe, punter for the Oakland Raiders. “As players, we are role models to a wide variety of people, and this is a great way to send a message of empathy to those who love and watch the game. Also, I'm pretty stoked that people can buy something with my number on it.”

“June is a special month for the LGBT community,” said Super Bowl Champion Brendon Ayanbadejo. “I am extremely excited that the NFLPA’s One Team Shop is adding its name to the list of ever-growing allies. The simple fact that football players believe in equality for every human being is going to make an impact on a lot of peoples’ lives.” Steve Gleason, a former NFL Player supporting this effort said, “It’s pretty simple for me, I believe all people are created equal, regardless of their sexuality. To promote respect and acceptance is an important role for NFL players and the NFLPA.”

Each shirt features the name and jersey number of an NFL player, including: Brendon Ayanbadejo, Connor Barwin, Domonique Foxworth, Scott Fujita, Steve Gleason, Chris Gocong, Chris Kluwe, Donté Stallworth, Terrell Suggs and Eric Winston.

Athlete Ally Thanks Jason Collins

Featuring Hudson Taylor and Brendon Ayanbadego.

Quote Of The Day: Andy Roddick

"Yesterday was an incredible day for athletes everywhere. Jason Collin’s courage and leadership in coming out reminds me of how important it is for an athlete to be able to be true to him or herself. As an Athlete Ally, I want to support every athlete to feel comfortable and confident being themselves and to make sure that all people - players and fans alike – are welcome and included in tennis.” - Tennis superstar Andy Roddick, in a press release announcing that he and fellow tennis star Mardy Fish have joined Athlete Ally.

Denver Nuggets Star Becomes First NBA Player To Join LGBT Allies Sports Group

Denver Nuggets star Kenneth Faried, who has two moms, has become the first NBA player the join Athlete Ally, the group founded by former collegiate wrestling star Hudson Taylor. Amanda Terkel reports at Huffington Post:

"Becoming an Athlete Ally gives me the opportunity to spread a message of inclusiveness throughout the NBA and our country," said Faried in a statement to The Huffington Post, referring to the non-profit group that advocates for gay rights in sports. "I have two moms and I love them both very much. I respect, honor and support them in every way. The bond I have with them has made me realize that I want all members of the LGBT community -- whether they are parents, players, coaches or fans -- to feel welcome in the NBA and in all of our communities." As a member of Athlete Ally, Faried joins Brendon Ayanbadejo of the Baltimore Ravens, Chris Kluwe of the Minnesota Vikings, Scott Fujita of the Cleveland Browns, Connor Barwin of the Houston Texans, as well as professional international sports stars and college players.