Page 147 of Loving the Legend
“Hey, Ty. Hey, Lily.” Kieran’s phone must be on speaker. I recognize Tommy’s gruff voice.
“Hi, boys,” Lily responds.
“We’re watching Sid’s interview on ESPN.”
“Us too. We didn’t want you to be alone,” Kieran replies, making warmth spread throughout my chest. I love this family so much.
We all go quiet, tuning into Sid’s interview.
“...For the privacy of my loved ones, I won’t answer that. I will say that my mother raised me to not be a bigot. In my family, we’re proud of our queer family members. It takes a lot of courage to identify as gay in our society. I don’t think guys realize how insidious all of the homophobic slurs are on and off the court.”
“Sid, Sean from—” interrupts a reporter, but Sid raises his hand, silencing him.
“Hold on, I’m not finished. Statistically speaking, there are probably closeted players in the league because it doesn’t feel like a safe place to be out.”
What's he doing? He has to know the media will run with this and poke into his dating life.
“Breathe, Ty. He’s not going to out himself like this,” Lily says.
How’d she know I was holding my breath?
I take a deep breath.
“…should ask ourselves why that is because it’s not okay. To be clear, I’m not proud of my actions tonight. I am not condoning violence as a response to bigotry. I am not a violent person, but I am human. And there’s only so many times a person can face ugliness without reacting. That said, I apologize to everyone I may have disappointed through my actions tonight. It was whack. I disrupted the game and let my teammates down—” A reporter yells a question. Sid raises his hand again, commanding silence.
“We all have a choice. We can stand by and let things continue as they’ve been, or we can speak up. Here’s my choice—I am going to work like hell to stand up against homophobia and ignorance so that the current and future generations of players can feel that it’s safe to be who they are.”
“Whoa. This is…powerful,” I mutter, more to myself than anyone else.
“He’s doing what he said he would do years ago,” Kieran says.
“He is,” Lily replies.
“Sid, do you identify as straight?” an interviewer asks.
All of the oxygen seeps out of the room. However brave, what Sid's doing changes everything.
“Why does that matter? I have to be gay to stand up against homophobia? Is that what you’re implying? I’ll take one more question.”
“Sid, is there anything you want to say to the gay fans watching this interview at home who may be struggling, facing bullies or bigotry?”
He freezes for a moment, staring in the direction of the person who asked the question. He leans back in his chair and peers around the room. His pensive gaze is piercing.
I wonder what's going on in that head as I rub the goosebumps covering my arms.
He releases a long exhale and leans into the mic.
“To the people who identify as LGBTQIA around the world, I see you. You’re not alone.” He pauses. Each second of silence charges the air with more electricity.
“I’m committed to doing my part to make this a more equitable place. Homophobia is vile, and it has no place in any organization or society worth its salt. I know that it can seem bleak at times, but you deserve to live authentically. You deserve to flourish. You deserve to be here.”
He pauses again, and it has weight and purpose like the last one.
“This is a powerful form of resistance—living and loving proudly while shielding yourself from internalizing the ignorance out there. I know this is easier said than done. I know it isn’t always safe to be who you are. I’m committing to doing whatever I can to help change that, and I call upon others to do the same. You’re part of a great community where there are more members and allies than you think. You’re strong, brave, and resilient. Things will get better. There are many of us out here fighting to make it so. Stay safe and refuse to despair. Thank you.”
The reporters erupt, yelling questions as he pushes back his chair and walks off. The screen jumps back to wide-eyed ESPN correspondents.
“I’m not crying,” Kieran croaks.
