The Australian Football League (AFL) 129-year’s history has emerged as a former Australian rule player openly as a gay or bisexual person.
Mitch Brown, who played 94 matches for West Coast Eagles between 2007 and 2016, told Daily aus The weight of hiding his sexuality played a “huge” part in his decision to retire.
He said that he hoped that his decision to speak will create “security, comfort and place” for others.
News is an important moment for AFL, which was the only prominent professional men’s game before the brown declaration, which was never openly gay or bisexual player even after retirement.
Brown shared the news in a direct message to the social media account of the Daily AUS after watching coverage of recent events of homophobia at AFL.
“I played in AFL for 10 years for West Coast Eagles, and I am a bisexual man,” he wrote.
Brown said that the decision to speak came from the “feeling of peace … comfort and confidence”, when he was an active player, when he was not hiding his sexuality, Brown said.
He said, “It was not an opportunity to speak openly or find out his feelings or questions in a safe manner,” he said.
Brown described a culture of “hyper-lady” at AFL, where he heard “countless” homophobic comments that hurt him on the field.
“When I was growing up in school, the word ‘gay’ was constantly thrown around … for a man in Australia, [it was seen as] Perhaps you can be the weakest thing. ,
He also recalled about talking to the teammates with the teammates how they would feel bathing next to a gay person.
“One of the players said” I will be in a cage filled with lions compared to a shower next to a gay person. “
The revelation and criticism of the AFL culture can mark a significant change in the locker room of the Australian men’s game, a specialist in behavioral science told the BBC.
Researcher Eric Dennison, a researcher at Monash University, said, “This is a historic moment for the world game as AFL is the ultimate major professional game without an openly gay or bisexual male player. However, the players coming out so far have not affected the changing behavior at the ground level.”
,[But] Brown is taking a very different view than other players that he is very open about problems that need to be converted into their game, at the ground level, to make people feel safe. ,
Former American football player David Coppe has been 50 years since he came out as the first gay professional athlete at NFL – but Denison hopes the brown declaration of Brown “will help change the changes in culture and behavior in clubs around Australia”.
36 -year -old Brown is currently in a relationship with a female partner and was first married to Netball player She Bolton, with whom he shares two sons.
The announcement comes after several high-profile homophobic incidents in AFL.
Last week, the Adelaide Crow player Izak Rankin received a four -week ban on using the “highly aggressive” homophobic slur during a game.
Addressing the incident, Brown said that he would like to see the “sense of change” in the league through raising the “positive male role model”.
“My advice to AFL will be my advice, let’s celebrate players who cannot be the most successful, but they are the most important players of our community.”
Brown said that he believes that AFL currently has gay and bisexual players who are closed.
He encouraged fans to be sympathetic to all players and shared a message for those who still do not feel comfortable to speak.
“I see you and you are not alone.”
