Photo credit: Shutterstock
After The Washington Post published footage of presidential nominee Donald Trump making a series of lewd remarks about women, the Republican frontrunner dismissed the comments as mere “locker room talk.” But professional athletes aren’t letting him get off that easy. Instead of using their celebrity status to abuse women, these athletes are using their stardom to speak out against sexual assault.
Chris Conley, wide receiver for the Kansas City Chiefs, published a series of tweets in response to Sunday night’s presidential debate. His statements are as follows:
- “Just for reference. I work in a locker room (every day)… that is not locker room talk. Just so you know…”
- “Have I been in every locker room? No. But the guys I know and respect don’t talk like that. They talk about girls but not like that. Period.”
- “Apart from this debate and apart from the election. I’m appalled how many of you are tweeting me that talking and acting that way is ok.”
But Conley wasn’t the only one to speak out. NBA free agent Kendall Marshall also took to Twitter to voice his opinion.
- “PSA: sexual advances without consent is NOT locker room talk.”
Even L.A. galaxy winger Robbie Rogers expressed his outrage.
- “I’m offended as an athlete that @realDonaldTrump keeps using this ‘locker room talk’ as an excuse.”
The list goes on, with baseball pitcher Sean Doolittle writing:
- “As an athlete, I’ve been in locker rooms my entire adult life and uh, that’s not locker room talk.”
But perhaps most revealing is WWE wrestler/UFC fighter CM Punk’s response in which he compared Donald Trump to serial killer Ted Bundy.
- “’Grab them by the pussy’ isn’t talk from any locker room I’ve been in. It’s a Ted Bundy quote. #debate2016.”
The fact that so many professional male athletes are standing up for women’s rights is a sign that times are changing. In the never-ending fight for gender equality, it’s imperative that privileged men speak out against misogyny.
