NFL Linebacker Speaks Out for Gay Marriage

New Orleans Saints linebacker Scott Fujita no doubt has a lot on his mind in the final days leading up to the Super Bowl this Sunday in Miami. His team is entering the big game with the weight of expectation from the Louisiana faithful, who only four years ago were struck by the unflinching eye of Hurricane Katrina.

But Fujita is also taking this opportunity in the spotlight to follow in the footsteps of Baltimore Ravens linebacker Brendan Ayanbadejo, who last year came out in favor of gay marriage in a highly publicized Huffington Post blog that saw an about-face for professional athletes in the realm of global civil rights. Fujita talked with The Advocate about his position on gay rights in an interview posted today, outlining his hope to separate the “shut up and play football” aesthetic of most pro athlete fans.

Here’s an excerpt:

Advocate.com: The city of New Orleans must obviously be thrilled by the Saints making it to the Super Bowl — what fan reactions have resonated most with you?

Scott Fujita: To say the city is thrilled would be an understatement. No one deserves this more than the people of New Orleans, especially considering everything they’ve been through. All week long people have been coming up to congratulate me — and my family lives downtown, so we run into a lot of people — and I feel the need to congratulate them. This is good for all of us. I said after the game that Brett Favre is a great story, but the city of New Orleans and the Saints are an even better story.

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