Magic Johnson’s Son Comes Out, Kobe Bryant Not Surprised By Magic’s Unflinching Support

Magic Johnson’s son EJ came out of the closet this week, and, immediately following that life changing event, Magic Johnson said he fully supports his son’s lifestyle. Following that big announcement, Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant told TMZ that he was really impressed by Johnson’s support. Kobe says, “Of course Magic is supportive of and loves his son. Why should anyone be surprised? What I can’t tolerate is a lack of tolerance.”

As you might have noticed, Kobe didn’t simply put the spotlight on EJ but instead may have paved the way for athletes to come out of the closet. His statement “What I can’t tolerate is a lack of tolerance” could be a big boost of support for at least some athletes who have no doubt lived in the closet for years.

After EJ came out of the closet, Magic Johnson and his wife said “Cookie and I love E.J. and support him in every way. We’re very proud of him.”

Magic Johnson threw his support behind the LGBT community during a 2011 interview with Huffington Post Canada. During that interview, Magic spoke about HIV/AIDS and the plight it had brought to the gay community:

“I learned a lot from the white gay community because they had gotten their community, rallied them, educated them and did a wonderful job about driving the numbers down. That is the best approach that I’ve seen; it’s been the most effective. So what we try to do in our community is bring those results to us. So I’m working hard to continue to educate minorities about HIV and AIDS and we’ve got to band together. We’re too fragmented right now, but if we can do that, we’re going to do well…”

Following that and other statements, rumors began to circulate that Magic Johnson’s son was gay and had contracted AIDS/HIV from his partner.

What do you think of Kobe Bryant’s statement about tolerance?