Wow. I completely missed this. You may be familiar with the You Can Play initiative by the NHL to promote LGBT tolerance in athletics. It has been speerheaded by the Burke family and the Flyers.
Recently, the Penguins’ Brooks Orpik contributed a video.
Orpik told the Post-Gazette:
“When they asked me to do it, there was no way I was going to say no,” Orpik said. “It was something I jumped on right away.”
It didn’t hurt that Orpik believes strongly in the message. Although the project targets homophobia in hockey, he is convinced it will help a lot of other people. Kids everywhere are bullied merely because they are different. They often lead shame-filled lives and can’t understand why. Some commit suicide.
It is a horrible cycle that must be stopped.
“The bigger picture here is to encourage people not to be afraid of who they are,” Orpik said. “It’s also to encourage others to be a little more accepting of those who are different than they are.”
What a terrific step for the Penguins and the NHL.
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