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Carl Nassib Becomes First Openly Gay NFL Player

Raiders defensive end Carl Nassib has become the first openly gay active NFL player, after coming out in an Instagram video posted on June 21.

“I just want to take a quick moment to say that I’m gay,” Nassib says in the video. “I’ve been meaning to do this for a while now, but I finally feel comfortable enough to get it off my chest.”

He continues: “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 actually hope that like one day, videos like this and 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.”

The Trevor Project is a suicide-prevention and crisis-intervention project for young LGBT people. Credit: Carl Nassib via Storyful