Culliver's anti-gay rant doesn't surprise Raven

Culliver's anti-gay rant doesn't surprise Raven

NEW ORLEANS â€" The morning after 49ers cornerback Chris Culliver’s homophobic remarks sparked controversy, Ravens linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo, a staunch advocate for same-sex marriage, made it clear that he wasn’t surprised by that type of narrow-minded thinking.

“I hear it all the time,” Ayanbadejo said on Thursday. “I hear it every day. And it’s not just in the locker rooms. It’s on my Twitter. It’s on my Facebook. . . . I’m not surprised, but that’s why I speak so loudly about this.”

Earlier in the week, Culliver intimated that gay players wouldn’t be welcomed in the 49ers’ locker room. “We don’t got no gay people on the team,” Culliver told a radio station during Super Bowl XLVII Media Day on Tuesday. “They gotta get up out of here if they do.”

Ayanbadejo rejected that mind-set, but maintained that “Culliver is going to turn this into a positive thing.”

“I think in San Francisco, and being from the Bay Area myself, we really try to preach love and acceptance of everybody,” Ayanbadejo said. “I couldn’t really say anything negative to the young man. It’s just one of those things you have to live and you have to learn. In the words of Martin Luther King, ‘You can’t fight hate with hate. You have to fight hate with love.’

“We’ve all made our mistakes,” he added. “We’ve done certain things and we’ve hurt people if we meant to do it or not. But more than anything, it’s an opportunity to have a learning experience.”

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Culliver released a statement through the 49ers on Wednesday night before addressing the media on Thursday morning.

“I was really not thinking,” Culliver told reporters at the Niners’ media session on Thursday. “Or, something I thought, but not something that I feel in my heart. I’m not trying to bring any distraction to the team.”

San Francisco head coach Jim Harbaugh reiterated that the 49ers didn’t share Culliver’s initial sentiments.

“We reject what he said,” Harbaugh said Thursday. “That’s not something that reflects the way the organization feels, the way most of the players feel. . . . I think it’s going to impact him going forward. I think it’s something that he will learn about himself. You saw his statement. He pledged to grow from it. It will affect him. Hope and pray that it affects him in a positive way going forward.”

Ayanbadejo, meanwhile, continued to spread his message of tolerance, aware that it will take time for everyone to fully embrace it.

“I’d say 50% of the people think like Culliver,” Ayanbadejo said. “I’d say 25% of the people think like me. And then 25% of the people are religious. They don’t necessarily agree with all the things I agree with, but they’re accepting. So it’s a fight. It’s an uphill battle.”

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Ayanbadejo came to the Super Bowl with the hope of spreading the notion of inclusion. He’s unsure when and where gay professional athletes will be accepted.

“No matter who you are or what you do, if you’re doing something that you love, you should be able to do that,” he said. “You should be able to express who you are. Then you do things that you love to do (and) you’ll be better at them instead of always worrying about hiding who you are.”

Why has pro sports been behind other segments of society on this matter? 

“Do you want the truth? You can’t handle the truth,” Ayanbadejo said with a smile. “Honestly, I have my opinions why, but I really can’t voice them right now. I think it’s maybe something we’ll have to talk about after the Super Bowl.”

San Francisco wide receiver Randy Moss shared Ayanbadejo’s position. 

“We’re all human, so it’s not fair to sit there and judge a man or woman on their sexual preference,” Moss said. “That’s just not right.”

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