Eamon McGee, who was energetic in his backing of the Yes side the gay marriage referendum last year, has proclaimed it 'a sad indictment' of the GAA that none of his teammates or former teammates has come out as gay.
The HSE is currently launching a campaign to provide a safe school environment for gay students. McGee spoke at the launch today.
McGee remembers gay and lesbian classmates being bullied during his schooldays. He says he is ashamed he never tried to help them.
I played with hundreds of different players through club, college, county, province - and the statistics will say that there has to be some of them who are part of the LGBT community and no one I've played with has come out and that is a sad indictment of the GAA and a sad indictment on us.
We need to push forward and make that unacceptable because we have not created an atmosphere where people can be true to themselves.
It would be very hypocritical of me to say that the GAA is all-welcoming when it's not. It has still got a long way to go.
Interesting sentiments. Joe Brolly has written before about the numbers not adding up when it comes to 'out' players in the GAA. Realistically, there couldn't be as few gay players as there are players who have come out. This article was later discussed on the paper review on Off the Ball where it went down an unproductive (for all involved) dark alley.
The topic has been discussed in depth on Second Captains.
McGee has not been shy about engaging in the culture wars in the past. He became embroiled in an entertaining and generally playful back and forth with Kevin Cassidy on the issue of religion in schools. McGee lamented that religion was still being employed as a selection criterion for admission into schools. A thoroughly reasonable point but Kevin Cassidy found McGee's attitude to religion 'tiresome'.
@EamonMcGee your religious comments are getting tiresome Did you not go around coaching in Catholic Schools?? You had no issue then!!
— Kevin Cassidy (@KCASS7) September 30, 2015
[Irish Independent]
