Boston’s Top Sports Writer: “I Am Gay”

Boston. Beantown. Home to the Red Sox, Patriots, Celtics, Bruins, Carlton Fisk, Bobby Orr, John Havlicek, and Fenway Park. Now, Boston is home to another openly-gay major sports writer, the Boston Herald’s Steve Buckley. In 2003, another Boston Herald sports writer, Ed Gray, also announced he was gay, saying, “I’m out, and I am exercising my right to walk around proud.” Boston Sports Media Watch calls Buckley “the original sports media mogul in Boston.”

In “Welcome to my coming-out party,” published late last night, Buckley writes,

“Just over seven years ago, before Thanksgiving, we were getting into the car outside of a CVS when my mother said, “I think you should go ahead and do that story you’ve been talking about.”

“Really?”

“Yes,” she said. “Just go ahead and do it. And then we’ll have a party.”

“She was talking about the story in which I would say that I am gay.”

Buckley, 54, a sports writer for over thirty years, who has been writing for the Herald since 1995, says,

“I’ve put this off long enough. I haven’t been fair to my family, my friends or my co-workers. And I certainly haven’t been fair to myself: For too many years I’ve been on the sidelines of Boston’s gay community but not in the game — figuratively and literally, as I feel I would have had a pretty good career in the (gay) Beantown Softball League.”

“Over the past couple of months I have discussed the coming-out process with my family and a few friends, and have had sit-downs with Herald editor-in-chief Joe Sciacca and sports editor Hank Hryniewicz, as well as with WEEI’s Glenn Ordway. They’ve been great, as have my friends and family.

“But during this same period, I have read sobering stories about people who came undone, killing themselves after being outed. These tragic events helped guide me to the belief that if more people are able to be honest about who they are, ultimately fewer people will feel such devastating pressure.

“It’s my hope that from now on I’ll be more involved. I’m not really sure what I mean by being “involved,” but this is a start: I’m gay.”

Buckley is to be commended. Boston, despite being a college town, is a tough town, and not always as gay-friendly as its younger-than-average residential population would lead one to assume.

Buckley is the author of “Wicked Good Year: How the Red Sox, Patriots, and Celtics Turned the Hub of the Universe into the Capital of Sports.”

As heartwarming as this story is (and it is — read the entire piece; Buckley is an entertaining writer,) the comments section (over 250 at this writing) is an interesting assortment of support, removed posts (one could assume for the degree of their rancor,) but mostly, shoulder-shrugging, perhaps best-expressed by this reader’s thoughts:

“Not to rain on your parade, but so what????? I am sorry is this really a story?? I would rather you write about the 67 Sox…..Conig, Yaz, Smith, Lonborg etc!!”

On the day that the Republicans took control of the house, and with it, any hopes for the passage of ENDA, repeal of DOMA, or any other LGBTQ-friendly legislation, it’s nice to know that a major sports writer can come out of the closet to support, and a few shoulder shrugs.

(Thanks to our friends at Blabbeando for the tip.)