CONTACTStaffCAREER OPPORTUNITIESADVERTISE WITH USPRIVACY POLICYPRIVACY PREFERENCESTERMS OF USELEGAL NOTICE
© 2024 Pride Publishing Inc.
All Rights reserved
All Rights reserved
By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Private Policy and Terms of Use.
Speaking before the United States Tennis Association Icon Awards, where he was honored Tuesday, Phoenix Suns president Rick Welts said one of the more surprising results of his coming out was an increase in job offers from people impressed by his revelation.
Welts spoke with The Advocate at the U.S. Open in New York City prior to the ceremony for the awards, which recognize contributions to diversity and inclusion. The basketball team president and CEO was honored for his leadership as exemplified in the willingness to be open about his sexual orientation, as he became the first senior executive of a men's professional sports team to acknowledge that he is gay, in a front-page interview with The New York Times in May.
"I probably have had more job offers in the last five months than I ever have in my life from the most unexpected places, people who actually found me a more interesting candidate because of what I had chosen to do," said the NBA executive, who joined the Suns in 2002. "It's been overwhelmingly positive from my team, our players, our ownership, our employees."
Welts said he has responded to "literally thousands of emails and hundreds of letters" from old colleagues, concerned parents, and children seeking interaction since his groundbreaking announcement. Calling his new platform a "huge sense of responsibility," he said he was interested in working to better conditions for youth, perhaps with the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network, which has an inclusive sports project and will honor him in Los Angeles next month.
"It's been humbling, it's been a little bit overwhelming, but in a very good way," he said. "I think for me the challenge is kind of where from here, what do I do with this. I can't tell you I have the answer to that."
Asked about the year in professional sports so far, Welts said 2011 would be remembered as a watershed period for the advancement of LGBT causes. High-profile developments included a Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation public service announcement from the Los Angeles Lakers after shooting guard Kobe Bryant used an antigay slur, and the backlash against a hockey agent who criticized New York Rangers forward Sean Avery for his advocacy of marriage equality. Phoenix Suns point guard Steve Nash also participated in the same initiative, from the Human Rights Campaign.
"We have, especially in men's team sports, great difficulty even having the discussion," said Welts. "All these events that have transpired, good or bad, I think have heightened both the volume and the level of discussion to a place it's never really been before, and I think inevitably that's going, as we look back, to be viewed as a really important time."
One breakthrough yet to occur is the emergence of an openly gay player in the major men's professional team sports, something Welts said he was confident would happen, although he was reluctant to propose a time line.
"It will be incredibly courageous when it does happen, because it's different from me," he said. "It's very different. We will."
The third annual Icon Awards also honored the Sportsmen's Tennis and Enrichment Center of Boston. Former New York City mayor David Dinkins, a USTA board member who has been instrumental in the growth of the U.S. Open and its facilities including Arthur Ashe Stadium, received the inaugural Billie Jean King Legacy Award, presented to him by the lesbian tennis legend.
Dinkins, who advocated for the marriage equality law in New York this year with a video, served as city clerk from 1975 to 1985. He officiated his first wedding for a same-sex couple in July when he married Stephen Williams and Joey Pressley, a program director at Harlem United Community AIDS Center. Next for the former mayor will be the wedding later this month of Gay Men's Health Crisis executive director Marjorie Hill, who served as director of the Mayor's Office for the Lesbian and Gay Community in his administration, and her partner, Stacey Bridgeman.
"It was like, well, it's about time," said Dinkins of the marriage equality law before the awards ceremony. "In my time, I've done quite a few, some celebrity-type people and some ordinary folk, but I love weddings."
The former mayor also enjoys tennis and said he looked forward to matches once the rain delay lifted at the U.S. Open.
"Oh, hell yeah!" he said. "Serena."
Want more breaking equality news & trending entertainment stories?
Check out our NEW 24/7 streaming service: the Advocate Channel!
Download the Advocate Channel App for your mobile phone and your favorite streaming device!
From our Sponsors
Most Popular
Here Are Our 2024 Election Predictions. Will They Come True?
November 07 2023 1:46 PM
17 Celebs Who Are Out & Proud of Their Trans & Nonbinary Kids
November 30 2023 10:41 AM
Here Are the 15 Most LGBTQ-Friendly Cities in the U.S.
November 01 2023 5:09 PM
Which State Is the Queerest? These Are the States With the Most LGBTQ+ People
December 11 2023 10:00 AM
These 27 Senate Hearing Room Gay Sex Jokes Are Truly Exquisite
December 17 2023 3:33 PM
10 Cheeky and Homoerotic Photos From Bob Mizer's Nude Films
November 18 2023 10:05 PM
42 Flaming Hot Photos From 2024's Australian Firefighters Calendar
November 10 2023 6:08 PM
These Are the 5 States With the Smallest Percentage of LGBTQ+ People
December 13 2023 9:15 AM
Here are the 15 gayest travel destinations in the world: report
March 26 2024 9:23 AM
Watch Now: Advocate Channel
Trending Stories & News
For more news and videos on advocatechannel.com, click here.
Trending Stories & News
For more news and videos on advocatechannel.com, click here.
Latest Stories
Germany makes it easier to change gender and name on legal documents
April 12 2024 6:06 PM
A youth's call to action on this Day of NO Silence
April 12 2024 5:00 PM
Democrats introduce resolution in support of LGBTQ+ youth
April 12 2024 4:35 PM
Colton Underwood is hoping to create a gay reality TV dating show
April 12 2024 4:28 PM
Idaho closes legislative session with a slew of anti-LGBTQ+ laws
April 12 2024 1:39 PM
Pride
Yahoo FeedElevating pet care with TrueBlue’s all-natural ingredients
April 12 2024 1:39 PM
Watch Jimmy Kimmel's hilarious LGBTQ+ campaign video: 'You can't spell Biden without Bi'
April 12 2024 12:00 PM
Pride
Yahoo FeedCreating erotic art and advocacy with adult entertainer Cody Silver (EXCLUSIVE)
April 12 2024 11:39 AM
How I navigated through religious trauma
April 12 2024 11:00 AM
Limited gender markers add hurdles for nonbinary people
April 12 2024 9:34 AM
Suspect in killing of Black trans man Righteous Torrence 'TK' Hill identified by police
April 12 2024 9:13 AM