Gay Porn Story: No Big Deal
Pitcher Pulls a Piazza and Declares He's Not Gay
By Jim Buzinski
Outsports.com
The media are in a lather because
Cleveland Indians minor league pitcher
Kazuhito Tadano has apologized for making a gay porn flick in his
native Japan, but the story is a big yawn to us.
A
contrite Tadano, who doesn’t speak English, issued an apology
Tuesday for his role in the film, made in 2002 while he was a
university student. ''I did participate in a video and I regret it
very much,'' he said. ''It was a one-time incident that showed bad
judgment and will never be repeated. I was young, playing baseball,
and going to college and my teammates and I needed money. Frankly,
if I were more mature and had really thought about the implications
of what I did, it never would have happened.''
Tadano
then pulled a
Mike Piazza and assured the sports world that he is of the
correct sexual orientation. ''I'm not gay. I'd like to clear that
fact up right now,'' the 23-year-old pitcher said.
News
of the video first surfaced last year when Tadano, consider a
potential major talent, join the Indians’ farm club after his porn
role made him persona non grata in the Japanese league. He issued a
statement to get the issue behind him prior to the start of spring
training.
This
is the kind of story the media and fans love, dealing with taboo
subjects like porn and homosexuality. Outsports received interview
requests from a newspaper in Toronto and radio station in Denver.
Newspapers, radio and TV stations across the U.S. ran the item.
This
story, however, is much ado about nothing. It is not historic and
will not further the fight to make sports free from homophobia.
Tadano is not our Gay Jackie Robin-san. The fact that Tadano went
out of his way to declare his heterosexuality simply reinforced the
perception that being gay in sports is the equivalent of a death
sentence. His declaration, though, didn’t stop a sportswriter friend
from commenting, ''I
guess since Kazuhito Tadano was in a gay-porn film and he says he
isn't gay, he must just be a fantastic actor. Maybe he'll win an
Academy Award.''
It’s
cool that Tadano’s teammates and the Indians’ organization have been
supportive of him. Grady Sizemore, a teammate with Tadano with the
Indians’ Akron farm club, praised him for the way he told the team
last season. ''You could tell he was nervous,'' said Sizemore. ''But
I don't think it changed anybody's opinion of him. After it was said
and done, nobody thought anything more of it. He's a great guy and a
great pitcher.''
We’ll
never know the reaction, however, had Tadano apologized for making
the film but confirmed that he was gay. Or simply never mentioned
his orientation. Would he still have been accepted by the team?
Would he still be vying for a job with the Indians? How would the
media and fans react? The jury of those questions is still out. The
Tadano Affair is more of a sideshow than the main event in the
history of gays in sports.
Jan. 28, 2004 |
