(KCBS Radio) – A star swimmer at Stanford is alleging that he was “kicked off” the team because he is openly gay.
Abrahm Devine wrote in an Instagram post, “Plain and simple: there are surface level reasons I was kicked off the Stanford swim team, but I can tell you with certainty that it comes down to the fact that I am gay.”
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As many of you know, I’m an openly gay swimmer and I am the only one at my level. I want to use this post to call out some of the homophobia that I’ve experienced being an athlete, and encourage everyone to be thoughtful and intentional about changing some of the homophobic aspects of the athletic culture that exists today. While I have many specific examples of micro aggressions and outright aggressions that I’ve experienced, homophobia is ultimately much more than an accumulation of experiences. In fact, it is a denial of experience. While I feel like I’ve tried to convey this to many people, many of whom deny any possibility that they contribute it, I’ve started to ask myself: Why is it my job to educate coaches and athletes at the most resourceful university in the world? I cannot continue to try to engage people in this conversation when there is so much fragility to obscure my humanity and character, so much rhetoric to keep me silent. Everyone says they support me, and yet, for the millionth time, I am the only one speaking up. To my coaches who sport the pride flag on their desk, to the athletes who liked my pride photo on Instagram, I need you to wake up to what’s happening around you. How can you say you support me and my equality? How can you not see how Stanford Swim has treated me and used me over the last 4 years? Am I invisible? Plain and simple: there are surface level reasons I was kicked off the Stanford swim team, but I can tell you with certainty that it comes down to the fact that I am gay. This is a pattern. Homophobia is systematic, intelligently and masterfully designed to keep me silent and to push me out. I am a talented, successful, educated, proud, gay man: I am a threat to the culture that holds sports teams together. I want something to change, because I can’t take it anymore. My story is not unique. There are queer voices everywhere and all you have to do is listen. I am asking, begging for some sort of action. If you are reading this, this post is for you! Gay or straight, swimmer or not. None of us are exempt from homophobia. It is your civil duty to educate yourself. If you choose not to, it is at my expense.
A post shared by Abrahm DeVine (@abrahmdevine) on Sep 29, 2019 at 7:32pm PDT
Devine graduated in the spring but says he was not allowed to continue training with the team as a professional. During his four years at Stanford he became an NCAA champion, broke several school records and was named the Pac-12 Conference Swimmer of the Year. Devine has also competed at the World Championships twice as part of Team USA and says he is the only openly gay swimmer to compete at such a high level.
Stanford assistant athletics director Brian Risso said in a statement, “It is unfortunate Abe feels this way. That said, Abe wasn’t invited back to train as a postgraduate, for reasons entirely unrelated to his sexuality. We take pride in the inclusivity and supportiveness that exists on both our men’s and women’s teams, but we will continue to strive, as always, to improve those aspects of our culture.”
Devine says he is speaking out in order to bring attention to the “homophobic aspects of the athletic culture that exists today.” He says that while former coaches and teammates say they support him, they are ignorant of the homophobia that he experiences and fail to educate themselves or create change.
“Homophobia is systematic, intelligently and masterfully designed to keep me silent and to push me out… There are queer voices everywhere and all you have to do is listen. I am asking, begging for some sort of action,” he writes. “None of us are exempt from homophobia. It is your civil duty to educate yourself. If you choose not to, it is at my expense.”
