“I just don’t see how I could be living an honest, truthful life and have that in the background,” said My-King Johnson, the first openly gay recruit in major conference American college football (grid iron) on his sexuality.
Johnson, who will play for the Arizona Wildcats, came out to his friends and family when he was 12 years old. Coaches and friends have shown their support for his stance.
As a senior in high school, he was the top defensive end in the state of Arizona, playing for Tempe High School.
According to Arizona defensive line coach Vince Amey, Johnson told him about his sexuality and Amey responded saying: “We want you to be a Wildcat.”
“I said, ‘Look, you are who you are, I am who I am, and I’m going to coach you the same way,” Amey said. “I’m going to treat you the same way.”
Johnson’s friends and coaches have praised his decision to be open about being a gay Black male football player. “I do feel like when I say that, it can put a target on my back,” said Johnson. “But whatever.”
Princeton player Mason Darrow was the last college football player to come out as gay, which he did in 2015, and Missouri’s Michael Sam is the most famous gay player, but he only went public after ending his career.
[Abridged from TeleSUR English.]
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