Friday, May 3, 2013
Justin Fashanu, the Jason Collins of his time.
Long before Jason Collins came out
of the closet on April 29, 2013 making Collins the first active male professional
athlete in a major North American team sport to publicly come
out as gay, 15 years ago, 37-year-old Justin Fashanu an English
professional soccer player who was also the first black footballer to command a
£1million transfer fee with his transfer from Norwich City to Nottingham Forest
in 1981 was the Collins of his time. Fashanu revealed his homosexuality midway
through a career that flirted with stardom and ended in tragedy.
The difference, Fashanu’s time
wasn't ready for him. Times have changed since, while Collins has been
lauded for his bravery after his revelation earlier last week, Fashanu's
sexuality made him a target. His own coaches, teammates and fans all made crude
jokes about him. Opposition fans concocted vile songs and chants about the
English player who at the time had played for various English clubs and even
the national team.
John Fashanu, Justin Fashanu's only brother described Justin as an "outcast" after his revelations about his
sexuality, lamenting the fact that he (John) would be the focus of extra
attention from jeering fans as a result of Justin coming out.
Justin Fashanu moved briefly to the
United States in the mid-1990s, finding work as both a player and a coach.
However, after accusations he had sexually assaulted a 17-year-old in Maryland
– where homosexual acts were then illegal – he fled back to England. Within
weeks he was dead, hanging himself in a storage unit after a visit to a gay
sauna.
Amal Fashanu, John Fashanu’s daughter
fondly remembers her uncle and admits the process of collecting material for her
documentary was both heartbreaking and joyous.
"It was like getting to know
someone all over again," she said. "The road to clearer thinking in
sport was never going to be an easy one and there is still a long way to go. It
needed someone like Justin to come along who had no fear of repercussions and
wasn't prepared to live his life as lie.yahoo sports
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