LA TIMES covers young, out gay and lesbian athletes

Saturday's Los Angeles Times featured a front-page story (albeit below the fold) entitled "Young and out on the field" about the impact being out at a young age and competing in sports while in high school and college is having on the students, their peers and their educatonal institutions.

In Seattle, Goodman began dropping hints around his eight-man boat more than a year ago. He talked with his best friend, and with another rower who seemed both understanding and physically large enough to make a good ally.

When word spread, no one teased or whispered about him. The crew saves money by sharing hotel beds on the road, and the teammate who bunks with Goodman didn't mind.

[...]

The 18-year-old belongs to an emerging generation of openly gay and lesbian athletes on high school and college campuses across the country. These young men and women are quietly venturing where no pro football or baseball star has gone, challenging the conformist, if not downright homophobic, tradition of the playing fields.

Their numbers are difficult to gauge because many confide only in peers. Experts chart the trend anecdotally through athletes who join gay rights clubs at school, e-mail gay rights advocates for advice or announce their sexual orientation on websites such as Facebook and MySpace.

It was interesting to see such an encouraging article about the current state of gay rights with implications for the future in such a hidebound paper like the Los Angeles Times.