(Jeff Hanisch/USA TODAY) Chris Kluwe plans to sue the Vikings if they don’t release an independent report completed by two attorneys investigating whether Mike Priefer made homophobic comments.
Chris Kluwe takes a lot of flak for things that aren’t his fault.
The twitterverse has been especially rough on the punter, but there is no truth behind the accusations being thrown at him. No, this is not some elaborate scheme to earn money and become famous. It is simply a brave reprimand to a homophobe who has no business interacting with other human beings. Priefer is a despicable excuse of a man, and it is puzzling that fans are coming to his defense. I understand fandom of the team, but this isn’t about football or the Vikings; this is about Mike Priefer. Chris Kluwe is a hero, not a villain. The villain in this story is Priefer.
Debunking Arguments Against Kluwe
He’s sour: I don’t believe the reason Kluwe accused Priefer of homophobic comments was to screw over the Vikings organization. Kluwe gains nothing from this whole debacle, except trying to make sure this monster is unemployed. As he said in his essay, coming out against Priefer ends his chances of returning to the NFL.
Kluwe freaked out over one slip of the lip: One tweeter claimed Priefer’s comments were “in the heat of the moment”, “But Kluwe took it to heart because it wasn’t for his cause.” Well I sure hope it isn’t anyone’s cause to collect all homosexuals and blow them up. No, he didn’t overreact. He was the only one who even had any courage to react.
He’s arrogant: Just because someone has the courage to speak out for other people’s rights does not mean that he is an attention-craving jerk. It means that he is an influential, groundbreaking leader, a role model for our kids. No, his main priority is not to gain media coverage. Kluwe’s main priority is to prevent people from being extremely offensive and rude. I respect that.
What I don’t get is why people claim that Kluwe is doing this for attention. Is he supposed to hear someone insult millions of already-oppressed people and just stay mum? I think we can all admit what Priefer said was wrong, but why should Kluwe stay quiet? So the team that threw a blanket over his activism for others’ rights can retain their hateful special teams coach?
If anyone else (with any moral compass, of course) was put in Kluwe’s position, they too would have done the same thing. I don’t care if it’s Bill Parcells, I don’t want that guy having any association with my favorite football team. It’s just plain wrong.
Disclaimer: Yes, I’m still a Vikings fan. I’m not a fan of Mike Priefer. I am disappointed in the Vikings organization for not letting a player use his platform to speak out for a good cause, but that doesn’t mean they’re homophobic. Mike Priefer is homophobic (I hate him, if you can tell yet).
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