This presentation will discuss the new progressive image of gay male athletes and the influence this image has in popular culture and the visibility of LGBT groups on university campuses. First, we will present a brief history and evolution of gay men in the media (1960s-1980s), relying on social movements, film/television, and pornography. There will then be a focus on the identity formation of gay athletes in the hyper-masculine, anti-gay culture of athleticism and the presence of gay male athletes in professional and college sports; this discussion will include social frameworks, i.e. symbolic interactionism, identity foreclosure, as well as more classic theory: Erik Erikson’s stages of identity development. Third, affirmative action within the sports arena (e.g., the You Can Play campaign, Athlete Ally) will be discussed as well as images seen today of young gay men in current fashion. We will also rely on a clip from a documentary entitled The University Pool, which I produced, that features three gay former male college athletes discussing their identity development as well as their interaction and experiences with social stigma and social acceptance. The title of the presentation, Has the progressive image of gay male college athletes advanced the LGBT identity in popular culture and on U.S. campuses?, lends itself to stimulating a discussion as opposed to a lecture, so we are offering more of a round-table discussion after our PowerPoint presentation and viewing the clips from The University Pool.
About the presentersScott Sheidlower
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Truett Lee Vaigneur
Dr. Truett Lee Vaigneur, Jr. is a LEADS (Linking Employment Academics and Disabilities Services) Specialist at The City University of New York. He hosts the Manhattan talk show, Disabilities Redefined, which is aired in Manhattan and can also be seen on YouTube. His first children’s book, ‘Aqua Blue, Visions of a Swimmer,’ is based on the childhood of a successful, paraplegic swimmer. Truett is also an adjunct psychology professor at York College.