Shaquille O’Neal Joins Fight Against Bullying of Gays, Lesbians


Shaquille O’Neal, alongside Golden State Warriors executive Rick Welts, has been enlisted by the folks at GLAAD in an effort to reduce bullying of gays and lesbians. From the San Fran Chronicle: “As part of National Bullying Prevention Awareness Month, Shaquille O’Neal is teaming up with the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) to launch its ‘Amplify Your Voice!’ campaign, and Warriors President Rick Welts will be honored Oct. 21 by the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) during their seventh annual Respect Awards gala in Los Angeles. The Warriors named Welts president and chief operating officer in September to oversee business-related operations and report directly to owners Joe Lacob and Peter Guber. He had a nine-year stint with the Phoenix Suns as president and was chief executive officer the past two seasons. In an effort to breach what he sees as a stigma against homosexuality in men’s team sports, Welts revealed in May that he is gay. Four months later, he resigned from the Suns.”