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Michael Irvin on the Cover of OUT Magazine Former Dallas Cowboys great Michael Irvin appears shirtless on the cover of this month's gay men's magazine Out and discusses his passion for equality issues.
Irvin publicly acknowledges that the impetus for taking a stand comes from his relationship with his gay brother, Vaughn, who died of stomach cancer at age 49 in 2006. Irvin had not spoken publicly about his brother previously, according to the magazine.
In the article, Irvin describes how his brother's sexual orientation contributed to his own issues. He says that he found out his brother was gay in the late 1970s, when he found Vaughn wearing women's clothing. Michael Irvin was rattled by the experience and has figured out since that it contributed to his own womanizing behavior. Working with a Dallas area bishop, T.D. Jakes, Irvin looked at the past.
"And through it all we realized maybe some of the issues I've had with so many women, just bringing women around so everybody can see, maybe that's the residual of the fear I had that if my brother is wearing ladies' clothes, am I going to be doing that? Is it genetic?" Irvin said to Out. "I'm certainly not making excuses for my bad decisions. But I had to dive inside of me to find out why am I making these decisions, and that came up."
Irvin says that his father, Walter, helped him learn a tolerant form of Christianity because the elder Irvin accepted his gay son and encouraged him to love his brother unconditionally. He remained close to his brother, one of 16 siblings, until his death.
"He was the smartest, most charismatic man I'd ever seen in my life," Irvin said. Irvin now believes the African-American community should support marriage equality. "I don't see how any African-American, with any inkling of history, can say that you don't have the right to live your life how you want to live your life," he said, according to the magazine. "No one should be telling you who you should love, no one should be telling you who you should be spending the rest of your life with. When we start talking about equality, and everybody being treated equally, I don't want to know an African-American who will say everybody doesn't deserve equality." The Hall of Fame wide receiver believes that this work matters more than his football career. "The last thing I want is to go to God and have him ask, 'What did you do?' And I talk about winning Super Bowls and national titles," Irvin said, according to Out. "I didn't do anything to make it a better world before I left? All I got is Super Bowls? That would be scary."
Irvin would support any athlete who wants to come out. "If anyone comes out in those top four major sports, I will absolutely support him. ... When a guy steps up and says, 'This is who I am,' I guarantee you I'll give him 100 percent support," Irvin said. And if the player produced on the field, he would have supported a gay teammate as well. Winning was paramount.
"I believe, if a teammate had said he's gay, we would have integrated him and kept moving because of the closeness," Irvin said, according to the magazine. He believes the team that won three Super Bowls could have integrated an openly gay teammate as well as any team.
"We had a bunch of different characters on that team," Irvin said. "Deion [Sanders] and Emmitt [Smith]. I believe that team would have handled it well." | |
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Way to deflect Michael
If he's giving an interview to Out he needs to come out and stop using his brother as a red herring. Especially if he's trynna entice the boys with this cover
[Edited 7/12/11 15:19pm] | |
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Ummm, that pic is well, oh my,.......... it does make a stament don't it. | |
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[Edited 7/12/11 15:53pm] | |
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Isn't this how any other straight man would pose for a gay magazine cover??? Michael Irvin: The Playmaker Preaches
It was a Friday evening in Fort Lauderdale, warm and clear, like so many that 12-year-old Michael Irvin had experienced growing up in southern Florida. He was riding in a car with his father, Walter, a roofer by trade who spent what little spare time he had operating as the local Primitive Baptist minister. The two were heading home after an errand that was a regular payday ritual: Walter would drive into town to buy cigars and then drop off money with Michael's grandmother to help with her bills. It was the late 1970s, a time of strife in America, and young Michael had already seen a lot in his low-income neighborhood. But nothing prepared him for what happened next. As Walter drove up Northwest 27th Avenue, about to turn onto 16th Street, his son noticed a man who looked just like his older brother, Vaughn, walking away from their house toward "all the craziness in the 'hood," Irvin remembers. It couldn't be Vaughn: "This man was wearing women's clothes." But it was. "My brother had a very distinctive walk," he says. Irvin couldn't believe his eyes. He turned to his father. "My dad looked back at me and said, 'Yes, that's your brother. And you love your brother.' " That was it. Irvin, who went on to become one of football's greatest players, as well as the epitome of the troublemaking macho NFL stereotype, would never again discuss the issue with his father. "Whether Vaughn and my father later spoke about it, I don't know. But it wasn't something that was ever discussed among the family," says Irvin, speaking for the first time about the gay older brother he idolized. Walter Irvin's message was simple: Michael was supposed to love his brother unconditionally, no matter what he looked like or who he was. But, still, the discovery was a shock that haunted Irvin as he grew into one of college football's most feted stars. He worried that people would find out about Vaughn and bring shame upon the family. Most of all, he worried that he was gay. He kept his brother's secret while winning a national championship with the University of Miami in 1987 (he scored a winning touchdown with a 73-yard catch during that season) and leading the Dallas Cowboys to three Super Bowl titles in the 1990s. Irvin was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2007, and in 2010, NFL .com named him one of the 100 greatest football players in history. Meanwhile, he developed a reputation as a reckless, self-destructive celebrity who polarized public opinion like no other athlete of his generation. Irvin was a great player with a big mouth and a nasty streak, a man with a penchant for fast living. He made it a point to parade his female conquests past his teammates. Although he's been married to his wife, Sandy, since 1990, Irvin made what he calls "mistakes" throughout his Cowboys career. "Growing up, whoever had the most women and the nicest car, he was the man," he says. "So when you get in the locker room, you remember that. I'm gonna get all the girls so that everybody says, 'Michael's the man.' "
Read the rest http://www.out.com/slides...heID=2#Top | |
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He REALLY coulda kept the "I'm not gay but . . . "
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Can you imagine if Reggie White had been on that magazine? Oh God. | |
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Whachu talkin' about Timmy???
You know if that fool had tried to retract his statements like Michael, he would've been on the cover. Of course I can't see that happening but I was just wondering out loud so forget I said it. | |
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Guuurrrlll stop you are killin me LMFAO | |
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Oh, I thought you meant that the Minister of Defense was gay. I was finnta say. | |
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That slight arch in his back and chest a lil' out just screams " I'm all about the ladies LOL" | |
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And that "smedium" shirt and greazed up body don't help
Makes me think they had someone on the shoot in charge of the baby oil application.
And I'm sure the dude responsible for de-ashifying these soupcoolers of his was just thrilled
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Isn't the point supposed to be eliminating the shame of living a lie in the closet??? | |
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Apparently... | |
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[img:$uid]http://www.bustedplay.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/02/michael.jpg[/img:$uid] | |
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Part of me thinks he's doing this as a pre-emptive strike against some other story that may come out. Maybe someone's blackmailing him or something | |
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As a matter of opinion, the only thing I like about his face are his lips. I love the shape and fullness of them, his lips are beautiful... I bet lots of dudes like em too. [Edited 7/12/11 16:22pm] | |
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Trust me ain't nuthin cute 'bout them lips when they ashy and got that "I burned my lips on a crack pipe" look to 'em | |
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for real. he's been swangin' that dingaling wit all kinds giving AND receiving.
hmm...
*crosses legs tightly* | |
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He's had dat Alexander O'neal lip trick going on forEVA. | |
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Probably the same miracle worker Malik Yoba used.... [Edited 7/12/11 16:36pm] | |
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