One week after Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Carl Nassib became the first active NFL player to come out as a gay man, the NFL has released a video supporting the LGBTQ+ community.
Earlier today (June 28), the NFL’s Twitter account posted a commercial that features a message of inclusion, as well as some text that says they support the Trevor Project, an organization that looks to assist suicidal members of the LGBTQ+ community.
“If you love this game, you are welcome here,” reads the NFL’s tweet for the video. “Football is for all. Football is for everyone. The NFL stands by the LGBTQ+ community today and every day. For more information on how you can help the @TrevorProject, visit http://thetrevorproject.org.”
In the video itself, there’s a black screen and spurts of overlain text that continually finishes a sentence that begins with “Football is.” “Football is gay. Football is lesbian. Football is beautiful. Football is queer. Football is life. Football is exciting. Football is culture. Football is transgender. Football is heart. Football is power. Football is tough,” reads one part of the video.
While the NFL didn’t come out and say this, it appears that their latest video is in response to Nassib, who has earned a lot of praise for having the bravery to come out. They ended up matching Nassib’s $100,000 donation to the Trevor Project just a few days after his announcement. Nassib said he made the announcement because he believes in representation.
“I’m a pretty private person, so I hope you guys know that I’m really not doing this for attention,” he said in one part of the video he uploaded to Instagram. “I just think that representation and visibility are so important.”
Watch the NFL’s video about inclusion for yourself below.