Las Vegas Raiders’ Carl Nassib is first active NFL player to come out as gay

"I finally feel comfortable enough to get it off my chest"

It can be hard during Pride to see past all the ignorant bravado and intolerant bullsh*t. But there are some uplifting stories out there too. Today's uplifting story is the news that the Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Carl Nassib has come out as gay. Nassib recorded himself talking about his experience, but also the importance of visibility and representation. He said the following via his Instagram. He is also the first NFL player to come out openly. https://www.instagram.com/p/CQZXu_8nyy_/

"Just wanted to take a quick moment to say that I'm gay. I've been meaning to do this for a while now but I finally feel comfortable enough to get it off my chest," he said.

"I really have the best life, the best family, friends and job a guy could ask for."

"I'm a pretty private person so I hope that you guys know that I'm really not doing this for attention. I just think that representation and visibility are so important.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CBt_2LTlwJj/

"I actually hope that one day videos like this and the whole coming out process are just not necessary, but until then I'm going to do my best to cultivate a culture that's accepting and compassionate."

Nassib has also donated $100k to the Trevor Project, the biggest suicide prevention charity for LGBTQ youth. Nassib's bravery will undoubtedly aid in bettering the representation of queer people in the queer community.

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