A profile in courage

It may not be young John F. Kennedy in PT-109, but Los Angeles Times sportswriter Mike Penner has plenty of courage of his own.

During my 23 years with The Times' sports department, I have held a wide variety of roles and titles. Tennis writer. Angels beat reporter. Olympics writer. Essayist. Sports media critic. NFL columnist. Recent keeper of the Morning Briefing flame.

Today I leave for a few weeks' vacation, and when I return, I will come back in yet another incarnation.

As Christine.

I am a transsexual sportswriter. It has taken more than 40 years, a million tears and hundreds of hours of soul-wrenching therapy for me to work up the courage to type those words. I realize many readers and colleagues and friends will be shocked to read them.

To call this "unprecedented" is a little like saying Rush Limbaugh is an obnoxious bag of assholes. In other words, it's a profoundly inadequate understatement.

Mike/Christine continues:

People have asked if transitioning will affect my writing. And if so, how?

All I can say at this point is that I am now happier, more focused and more energized when I sit behind a keyboard. The wicked writer's block that used to reach up and torture me at some of the worst possible times imaginable has disappeared.

My therapist says this is what happens when a transsexual finally "integrates" and the ever-present white noise in the background dissipates.

That should come as good news to my editors: far fewer blown deadlines.

So now we all will take a short break between bylines. "Mike Penner" is out, "Christine Daniels" soon will be taking its place.

From here, it feels like a big improvement. I hope with time you will agree.

This could be the beginning of a beautiful relationship.

Perhaps Christine's life will be easier in Los Angeles than it might be if she did this in, say, Dallas or Atlanta. But it's still going to be a tough road, and I admire her for not only coming to this decision, but for announcing it with good humor and the appropriate amount of care. And I applaud the colleagues and friends quoted, for taking the announcement in stride.

The more you see of this, along with similar statements by athletes and public figures like John Amaechi, the more the ignorant, hate-filled comments of people like Tim Hardaway and Don Imus will be marginalized, and people will be accepted for what they are, not for the degree to which they conform to some arbitrary "norm."

Okay, this time, hate the player

Since I first heard it, I liked the saying, "Don't hate the player, hate the play." But former NBA player Tim "I'm Not Penny" Hardaway took hate to a new level yesterday, in an interview on Miami radio.

With former NBA center John Amaechi disclosing last week that he's gay, Hardaway was asked by host Dan LeBatard on 790-AM The Ticket how he would have handled having a gay teammate. Hardaway said gays don't belong in the locker room and would destroy a team's chemistry.

"You know that what you're saying there, though, Timmy, is flatly homophobic?" LeBatard said. "It's bigotry."

Said Hardaway: "Well, you know, I hate gay people, so I let it be known. I don't like gay people. I don't like to be around gay people. I'm homophobic. I don't like it. It shouldn't be in the world or in the United States."

First off, good for Dan LeBatard to point out Hardaway's blatant bigotry. It's not hard to imagine how different the reaction might have been had Hardaway been talking to, say, KSFO.

And regarding a guy named "Hardaway" saying he hates gay people, well, insert your own joke in the Comments below. Sure, Hardaway later apologized, but it's hard to put the toothpaste back in the tube, as Rush Limbaugh, among others, has discovered in similar situations.

When John Amaechi came out last week, I wrote that perhaps it was emblematic of a burgeoning acceptance of all people in sports, regardless of their race, color, creed, or sexual orientation. Yes, I know there's still a long way to go, but Hardaway's screed just reminds me that we're probably going nowhere fast, with the hate and misunderstanding and stereotyping that long has been a hallmark of the American (usually male) locker room.

It's a shame that people like Hardaway think the way they do ... but even more of a shame that their fame allows them a forum to spew their hateful message.

Bravo, John Amaechi

I was heartened to hear the news yesterday that former NBA player John Amaechi (right) is coming out as gay in his new book, Man in the Middle, to be released February 20. He is the first NBA player, current or former, ever to make such a revelation.

I always followed Amaechi since meeting him during his days with the Orlando Magic (1999-2001), at which time I lived in central Florida. His charm, erudite wit, and intelligence endeared him to the Magic fans, and while I never really have followed pro basketball, I always felt he was something more than "merely" a basketball player.

Tragically, being gay in certain segments of society remains an enormous and perhaps insurmountable stigma. Not being gay myself, I cannot say firsthand, but I have known many men and women who have struggled with this issue in their own lives, and I can only imagine how much of a challenge it must be to have to hide one's identity while existing in the testosterone-fueled lifestyle of a major professional athlete. John Amaechi is demonstrating tremendous personal courage that I hope will serve him well as the spotlight shines on him in a new and different way from this point forward.

UPDATE (2:14 pm 2/8/07): The Orlando Sentinel today has an article on the subject that provides a little more insight. Perhaps we aren't far from the day when an active player can come out and not be ostracized for it ...