Magic Johnson Supports the Coming Out of his Son

Retired NBA basketball legend Magic Johnson did an interview recently where he talks about his son EJ coming out publicly for the first time. EJ announced he was gay when gossip site TMZ caught him on the street with his boyfriend walking hand in hand. Johnson shares that he and his wife had known about his son’s sexual orientation since he was 13 years old and have fully supported him. It doesn’t seem like such a newsworthy story for open-minded people, but I think that because our world is still so divided on the subject of homosexuality that when someone comes out publicly it is a media frenzy. With Magic Johnson being such an iconic athlete, a lot of people probably wanted to see and hear his reaction to his son being gay. I think when you throw athletes into the mix of the LGBT Community, people expect there to be negativity and nonacceptance. I like to believe that things have changed and it seems that many more athletes are more accepting of gay teammates. GLAAD released a statement praising the Johnson family for accepting their son as he is when so many other parents, especially fathers, reject their children. “Magic Johnson has been an exceptional role model throughout his athletic career, and now as the parent of a gay son,” Rich Ferraro, Vice President of Communications at GLAAD, said in a statement to The Huffington Post. “Magic’s and his wife’s unconditional support for E.J. is a perfect example of the love and care that all of our children need, especially those who come to identify as LGBT.”