Las Vegas Raider, Carl Nassib, is one of the first NFL players that is currently active to come out as gay.
He releases this statement on his social media platform, Instagram. He takes a video and says the following: “What’s up, people. I’m Carl Nassib. I’m at my house here in West Chester, Pennsylvania. I just wanted to take a quick moment to say that I’m gay”.
Nassib is a defensive lineman in the NFL. He says that he’s been “meaning to do this for a while now, but I finally feel comfortable enough to get it off my chest”. He is currently 28, telling his followers that he hopes that people would not have to make a video similar to his in the future. He is planning to donate $100,000 to the Trevor Project, an organization that has a goal to prevent suicide among LGBT+ youths.
He adds, “I’m a pretty private person so I hope you guys know that I’m really not doing this for attention.
I just think that representation and visibility are so important. I hope the whole coming-out process are just not necessary. But until then, I’m going to do my best and do my part to cultivate a culture that’s accepting, that’s compassionate, and I’m going to start by donating $100,000 to the Trevor Project”.
Nassib writes online that he has “agonized over this moment for the last 15 years” and decided to go public with the support of his family and friends”. He signed with the Raiders in 2020. His contract is three years, $25 million free-agent deal, with $16.75 million of his money being guaranteed to be given to him.
His team posted in support, captioning the pictures with “Proud of you, Carl 🖤” Nassib had been selected in the third round during the 2016 NFL draft after playing during his college career.
He attended Penn State while he was playing football in university. Not only has he played for the Las Vegas Raiders, but he has played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Roger Goodell, NFL commissioner, has welcomed the announcement and comments, “The NFL family is proud of Carl for courageously sharing his truth today.
Representation matters. We share his hope that someday soon statements like this will no longer be newsworthy as we march toward full equality for the LGBTQ+ community. We wish Carl the best of luck this coming season.”