Is there a such thing as not being gay enough? Well apparently there is after three softball players playing in a gay softball league won a settlement against the league after having their trophies stripped from them after being told that they weren’t gay enough to win trophy.
In 2008, San Francisco’s D2 softball team finished second in the Gay Softball World Series and shortly after were told being bisexual made them “not gay enough” to win the trophy.
According to the players the North American Gay Amateur Athletic Alliance asked them “intrusive” questions to determine exactly how gay they are. After questioning was completed the panel of questioners determined that the three men were “non-gay” and therefore they had exceeded the two heterosexual players rule.
According to the San Francisco Chronicle one of the three men was married at the time but all three men said they are bisexual. At the time that their second place award was stripped the league allegedly told them:
“This is the Gay World Series, not the Bisexual World Series.”
As part of their victory their second place finish was given back and they will receive an undisclosed amount of money.
After the victory the attorney for all three men said:
“This is an amazing result,” and “It’s also an opportunity to put a spotlight on significant discrimination in sports against the LBGT community.”
While it’s a win for the men US District Judge John Coughenour ruled in a preliminary decision that it’s:
“Reasonable that an organization seeking to limit participation to gay athletes would require members to express whether or not they are gay athletes.”
The sports organization has now changed their bylaws to welcome all gays, bisexuals and transgendered players.
