Former NBA player Charles Barkley has voiced his support for gay and transgender people declaring “”If you are gay or transgender, I love you” at recent public appearance.

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A video that quickly spread over social media shows the legendary basketballer speaking at an event in Lake Tahoe. In the short clip Barkley addresses the crowd declaring his support for the LGBTIQA+ communities.

““I want to say this: If you’re gay and transgender, I love you! Hey and if anybody give you sh*t, you tell them Charles said ‘F**k you!’”

It’s not the first time the sports star has spoken up about LGBTIQA+ rights. In 2016 when legislation was introduced in North Carolina which forced people to use public bathrooms that aligned with the gender assigned to them at birth, Barkley called for an NBA All Star game to be moved to another state.

In a 2020 interview on the television program Ellen, Barkley shared why he thought it was important to speak up on the issue.

“I think anytime you’re Black, you got to stand up for other people because you – Black people know what discrimination is like. And if you’re in a position of power, you got to always stand up against discrimination. And I’m blessed man, and … I’m never gonna sit back and let discrimination happen on my watch,” Barkley said.

Charles Barkley has also a vocal supporter of marriage equality.

Barkley played sixteens seasons in the USA’s National Basketball League playing for the Philadelphia 76ers, the Phoenix Suns and the Houston Rockets. He made is debut in 1984 and retired in 2000.

OIP Staff

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