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UNINTERRUPTED’s ‘Love Stories’ sheds light on LGBTQ+ in sports
Representation is love.
UNINTERRUPTED just released a special feature called Love Stories, a 60-minute roundtable discussion hosted by WNBA legend Sue Bird.
In the discussion, Bird and co., featuring transwomen activists Elle Hearns, Bamby Salcedo and Ashlee Marie Preston, shed light on important topics from trans rights to the Black Lives Matter movement.
Sue Bird, as a gay athlete, shared her own unique perspective of growing up with aspirations of being a basketball star.
“For me, there weren’t gay athletes to look up to. When I first came into the WNBA it was very much like ‘be the straight girl’ because I pass as straight whatever that means… and now it feels so good to know that there’s going to be another little girl who, if she’s gay she could look at me and be like ‘Oh. It’s been done. This is cool.'”
The conversation quickly segued to a discussion about trans lives, and how all Black lives must be protected. Elle Hearns shared her own keen insight.
“I always tell everyone, in order for black trans women to no longer be murdered, then the conditions of black communities have to be better… The reality is that the same thing that is happening to black men, or happening to black women who happen to be cis gender, is happening to trans people, and so there is no seperation of these realities.”
Love Stories is part of UNINTERRUPTED’s Love is UNINTERRUPTED campaign, which launched in early June. In collaboration with Megan Rapinoe, Sue Bird, and Athletes 4 Impact, UNINTERRUPTED released a limited edition exclusive hoodie in honor of PRIDE.
As expected, it sold out within mere minutes. The hoodie is beautifully designed, and $24 from each purchase is donated to Athletes 4 Impact.
Athletes 4 Impact is a platform for athlete activism and a “vital resource for athletes across all sports to become part of the movement for justice.”
Pushing onwards with the Love Is UNINTERRUPTED campaign, Uninterrupted is adamant about continuing to elevate stories from athletes and entertainers in celebration of visibility, vulnerability, emotional awareness, and acceptance.
Representation is everything. UNINTERRUPTED’s efforts conduce empathy and understanding, and right now, we need that in surplus.