Have To Respect LBGT Groups Trying To Keep BYU Out Of The Big 12

YardBarker- On Monday, Athlete Ally, a non-profit that conducts LGBT awareness campaigns for sports leagues, and the National Center for Lesbian Rights, sent a letter to Big 12 administrators detailing what they believe are discriminatory policies by BYU, a religious institution owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

In the letter addressed to commissioner Bob Bowlsby, the authors write in part: “BYU … actively and openly discriminates against its LGBT students and staff. It provides no protections for LGBT students … Given BYU’s homophobic, biphobic and transphobic policies and practices, BYU should not be rewarded with Big 12 membership.”



I know what you are thinking, what does a university's collective religious beliefs - no matter how antiquated they are - have to with who they happen to compete against athletically? Well, much to your disappointment, the answer to that question is absolutely nothing. That's why I love the decision of the LGBT community to try to block BYU from benefiting from a positive change of scenery. It's so perfectly petty that I have no choice but to respect it. Let's say they are successful in making sure the Cougars stay in their unknown, irrelevant conference. Nothing really changes. The school still gets to function as an institution of higher learning even thought they'll undoubtedly continue to promote a homophobic agenda. They'll still get to participate in college football and basketball despite the fact that their bathroom doors will remain locked to any and all transgenders. Literally the only thing it would accomplish would be making the LGBT community feel a false sense of pride by allowing them to claim they helped to withhold a university's equal right to conference realignment. 

Hmm, hindering a group of people from partaking in something that's supposed to be allowable to everyone simply because of what they believe in? Why does that concept seem so familiar? Oh wait, is it because it's the exact same line of thinking that the Catholic church used to keep homosexuals from contractually pledging their lives to one another through marriage? Bet that medicine was a lot more tolerable when you were shoving it down someone else's throat, eh BYU? You want to tell me that a bunch of LGBT groups are actively discriminating about a school and it's constituents then I would happen to agree with you, but it's about time they had the opportunity to return the favor. If you ask me they've been on the ass end of enough undeserved prejudice to be granted a pass when they choose to illicit it's use in doing something as harmless as keeping a university that's still operating from a blueprint that was drawn up Before Christ from joining a Power 5 conference.  

Hey BYU...