Liberal Talk Radio

If the White Sox hadn’t won last night, if the heads of Satans Incarnate weren’t on the chopping block, if the hurricane season of the century wasn’t underway and if deaths in Iraq hadn’t reached a somber, media-friendly round number, would we have paid more attention to the fact that a major sports figure has come out of the closet? Isn’t that a big deal? Isn’t that a step forward towards society’s ultimate recognition that homosexuality is and always has been a normal part of life? My only disappointment is that the sports figure wasn’t a man but rather WNBA star Sheryl Swoopes:

The only thing that outshines the exquisite diamond on Sheryl Swoopes’ left ring finger is the glow on her face as she discusses the love of her life.

It’s a love that the WNBA superstar has kept hidden for more than seven years. On Wednesday she “quit pretending,” disclosing that she is gay and in a committed relationship.

“I feel like I’ve been living a lie,” the Houston Comets’ star said in an interview with The Associated Press. “I’m at a place in my life right now where I’m very happy, very content. I’m finally OK with the idea of who I love, who I want to be with.”

Swoopes said she currently lives with her partner, former Comets assistant coach Alisa Scott.

The story was first reported in ESPN the Magazine, which hit newsstands Wednesday. She also announced an endorsement deal with Olivia, a lesbian cruise line.

It will be interesting to see how this plays out — and I think it will have a positive impact — because not only is Swoopes African-American but she’s also from a small conservative town in Texas:

While piling up accolades and accomplishments, the 34-year-old Swoopes said she dreamed about the day when she could attend an awards banquet with Scott on her arm.

“We have had to celebrate behind closed doors,” she said. “I don’t want to have to hide from the world anymore.”

But that’s not to say that she isn’t concerned about repercussions from her admission. She worries about her mother Louise, who has known for five years, but “doesn’t think it’s right.”

“She’ll probably never accept it,” Swoopes said. “But she’s dealing with it.”

And she is nervous about the response from her hometown of Brownfield, Texas, about 600 miles northwest of Houston, where cotton is king and Swoopes reigns as queen.

Not to mention what people will think right down the road in Lubbock, where she brought Texas Tech it’s only national championship in basketball by scoring 47 points in the final game in 1993.

“I worry about the reaction throughout the country, but I really worry about Brownfield and Lubbock,” she said. “Because they’re both small towns and Sheryl Swoopes is a local hero. Now what? I hope it doesn’t change. It’s important to me.”

Swoopes is perhaps the highest profile team-sport athlete to come out and follows two other WNBA players. Shortly before she retired in 2002, New York Liberty player Sue Wicks became the first active WNBA player to open up about her sexuality.

“I’m happy for Sheryl,” Wicks said. “I think all people deserve to be able to live their lives openly and honestly, and I applaud Sheryl for her courage.”

Former Minnesota Lynx player Michele Van Gorp, who no longer plays in the WNBA, also came out while an active player in July 2004.

(I think the key detail here is she’s a “team-sport athlete,” but I’m not sure why — Professor, perhaps some help here!)

But let’s get back to business — what if this was a man we were reading about? That would be really something — or not:

No man has ever come out while still active in the major leagues of football, baseball, basketball or hockey. If an NBA ever player did, commissioner David Stern said, there’d only be one question:

“How many points? How many rebounds? I think that it’s a non-issue.”

Which is what I was thinking the other day, actually. I was picturing a “Take Me Out” scenario in which the most-talented star on a baseball team is gay — and the news generally was well received (well, except for a key plot point . . . er, never mind). And wouldn’t it be that way because isn’t sports the closest thing we have to a meritocracy? What difference does it make if the star catcher or the star shortstop is gay if they’re hitting .320? (Sponsorship opportunities aside, that is, which is perhaps why in this big money era of sports it hasn’t happened yet.)

Come out, come out! There have to be other gay sports stars, right?

I was thinking about all of this because some colleagues and I were gossiping about certain Hollywood stars who may or may not be gay and refuse to come out of the closet. In the course of which, I made a prediction: a major male sports figure will come out of the closet before a leading man in Hollywood will because, owing to the large amounts of money invested in films and how producers probably think they must anticipate what middle America will tolerate, ironically, Hollywood is a much more conservative place.

Homosexuality in our culture will be acceptable when the film industry accepts a gay leading man. And that’s not because they’re homophobic but rather because they think the market is . . . or so they say . . .