Sports and the "High Five"

( Posted for KXYL's JW and JR W because of their imense interest in this topic and their continious gay bashing, innuendos, jokes, etc. )

Glenn Burke: A Gay "Hero" With Feet of Clay
By Bob Brigham
The Diamond Angle
(Reprinted by permission of The Diamond Angle. This story was written in 1995).

It was late in the 1977 season. Dusty Baker of the Dodgers was rounding third, heading for home, having just hit his 30th home run. And the Dodgers were heading for a National League pennant. The on-deck hitter was Glenn Burke, enjoying his second season in the big leagues. As Baker crossed the plate Burke raised his hand. Baker responded by raising his. The two hands slapped together and a bit of history was made. The first high-five in baseball.
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"He was a hero to us", said Jack McGowan, former sports editor of the San Francisco Sentinel, a gay newspaper. "He was ... real. He was athletic, clean cut, masculine. He was everything that we wanted to prove to the world that we could be."
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Gays come in as many varieties as straights. Artists, businessmen, doctors, construction workers, teachers. And professional athletes. And don't forget panhandlers, street thugs, drug users and felons. Our "hero" had metamorphosed into the latter group. Once the toast of any Castro Street bar he walked into, he was now welcome in none of them. He was more apt to be seen hanging around the door, badgering patrons for a handout. Loan? Forget it. Glenn doesn't repay, was the word in the neighborhood.
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Burke felt the that club knew about his sexual orientation. The Dodgers, one of the most image-conscious organizations in an image-conscious sport, would not have tolerated a gay ballplayer in the '70s. They might in today--if he could hit .500 with 150 home runs. But they would have to come up with a cover story. General Manager Al Campanis once suggested that it would be a good idea if Burke got married.

In his autobiography "Out At Home," written with Erik Sherman, Burke said that he felt his close association with Spunky Lasorda was something Spunky's dad could not tolerate. Although the rest of the world accepts that the Dodger manager's son was gay and died of AIDS, Tommy is in total denial on both counts.
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Did baseball give up on Glenn Burke or did he give up on baseball? Whichever, Alice Burke thinks it was the beginning of the end for her son.

Baseball Was His Life

to view the entire article please visit: http://www.outsports.com/baseball/2003/0617glennburke.htm
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Billy Bean played major league baseball from 1987 through 1995. He broke into the major leagues with the Detroit Tigers, and tied a major league record with 4 hits in his first major league game. He went on to play for the Los Angeles Dodgers, and the San Diego Padres. Born in Santa Ana, California in 1964. He was a multi-sport star at Santa Ana High School, where he was chosen “athlete of the year” as a senior. He was selected Valedictorian of his graduating class, and went on to become an “All-America” outfielder twice before graduating from Loyola Marymount University in 1986 with a degree in Business Administration.

After years of living secretly, Billy came out publicly in 1999. His story was front- page news in the New York Times, and subsequently on a nationally televised story with Diane Sawyer as well. He is the only living former major league baseball player to acknowledge his homosexuality. He has been working actively to try and dispel the myth and stereotypes that follow people of diversity. He was a featured spokesman on behalf of the Democratic National Committee during campaign 2000, and travels around the country, as a national spokesman, on behalf of the Human Rights Campaign, reaching out to many young adults who are desperately in need of a role model. In the prime of his career, Billy walked away from Major League Baseball in 1996, in part, because of a year long struggle dealing with the sudden death of his former partner, and the frustration of holding onto that secret all alone. His desire not to let that happen to anyone else pushes him to share his story.

“I believe that all people, regardless of their personal belief, or religious denomination, would agree that being honest with yourself, your family, and those around you, is a great foundation for living your life. It has been a long, hard journey for me, and I want people to learn from my mistakes, not share them.”

Billy lives in Miami Beach with his partner of 9 years, Efraín Veiga. They share a real estate business redeveloping residential properties. He is the author of, “Going the Other Way: Lessons from a life in and out of Major League Baseball.” (Avalon Publishing Group, NYC.) The film adaptation of his book, produced by Storyline Entertainment will soon air on the Showtime network. Billy, still devoted to competitive sports, travels around the country playing tennis and basketball in organized tournaments in hopes of raising the visibility of athletes of diversity.

to view the entire article please visit: http://www.billybean.com/bio.asp