Chris kluwe gay marriage

On April 16, , in recognition of his steadfast support of same-sex marriage and for starting a conversation about LGBT issues in athletics, Kluwe was named the Grand Marshal of the 41st annual Twin Cities Pride festival in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Former Minnesota Vikings punter Chris Kluwe said he believes he was cut by the team for his activism on behalf of same-sex marriage.

He said his chief antagonist was special teams coach Mike. Former Minnesota Vikings punter Chris Kluwe alleged in a 3,word article for Deadspin that he was fired from the NFL team because of his outspoken views on same-sex marriage. When Minnesota Vikings punter Chris Kluwe wrote a pointed response to a Maryland state lawmaker who opposes gay marriage, he had no idea he would get the reaction that’s followed.

During a Tuesday press conference, former NFL punter Chris Kluwe threatened to sue his ex-team, the Minnesota Vikings, for discrimination on several grounds. kluwe claims the team's special. In May , the Vikings released me from the team. At the time, quite a few people asked me if I thought it was because of my recent activism for same-sex marriage rights, and I was very careful in how I answered the question.

My answer, verbatim, was always, "I honestly don't know, because I'm not in those meetings with the coaches and administrative people. Allow myself to tell you a story about The following is a record of what happened to me during my season with the Minnesota Vikings, written down immediately after the draft in April, when I realized what was happening, and revised recently only for clarity. I tried to keep things as objective as possible, and anything you see in quotes are words that I directly recall being said to me.

This is a story about how actions have consequences, no matter how just or moral you think your cause happens to be, and it's a story about the price people all too often pay for speaking out. Today, April 30, , I am writing an account of events that transpired during my time with the Minnesota Vikings during the NFL season and leading into the season so I don't forget them in case it is necessary to recall what happened.

During the summer of , I was approached by a group called Minnesotans for Marriage Equality, which asked if I would be interested in helping defeat what was known as the Minnesota Gay Marriage Amendment. The proposed amendment would have defined marriage as "only a union of one man and one woman. I said yes, but that I would have to clear it with the team first. After talking to the Vikings legal department, I was given the go-ahead to speak on the issue as long as I made it clear I was acting as a private citizen, not as a spokesman for the Vikings, which I felt was fair and complied with.

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I did several radio advertisements and a dinner appearance for Minnesotans for Marriage Equality. No one from the Vikings' legal department told me I was doing anything wrong or that I had to stop. On Sept. Burns Jr. The letter also detailed why I supported the rights of same-sex couples to get married. It quickly went viral. I anticipated it would be about the letter punters aren't generally called into the principal's office.

Once inside, Coach Frazier immediately told me that I "needed to be quiet, and stop speaking out on this stuff" referring to my support for same-sex marriage rights. I told Coach Frazier that I felt it was the right thing to do what with supporting equality and all , and I also told him that one of his main coaching points to us was to be "good men" and to "do the right thing.

At that point, Coach Frazier told me in a flat voice, "If that's what you feel you have to do," and the meeting ended. The atmosphere was tense as I left the room. Please feel free to keep speaking out. I just came from my son's best friend's wedding to his partner in New York, and it was one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen. Coach Frazier asked me if I was going to keep speaking out on the matter of same-sex marriage and equality.

I responded that I was, and I related what Zygi Wilf had said to me at the game the day before. Coach Frazier looked stunned and put his hand across his face. He then told me: "Well, he writes the checks. It looks like I've been overruled. She outlined some strategies, mainly centered around talking only with large national media groups and ignoring the smaller market stations radio, television, print.

I said that I would be sure not to say anything to denigrate the team, but that I would like to talk with anyone who was interested. Both Coach Frazier and his PR person attempted to dissuade me from this course of action, saying that the message would be more effective if presented properly.