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FEARLESS: Portraits of LGBT Student Athletes
Portraits of LGBT Student Athletes, is a photography book and memoir by American Artist Jeff Sheng, featuring the portraits of over 200 lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender high school and college athletes in the United States and Canada, taken by the author between 2003 and 2015. Recalling his personal experience as a closeted student athlete, Sheng uses his story as a foundation for a wider exploration of LGBT acceptance in sports over the last decade. The book also includes intimate writings from some of the student athletes about their own coming out experiences, as well as an afterword by retired NBA basketball player Jason Collins. Please This purchase is specifically for the Red/Football cover featuring the student athlete Tanner. FEARLESS has 8 different outside covers, each with a spine color that matches the original 1978 LGBT Pride Flag. Each purchase however is just for one book (the inside of the books are all the same).
316 pages, Hardcover
First published June 22, 2015
18 people want to read
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March 11, 2016
Stunning. Brave. Inspiring. Beautiful. These are just four of the words I would use to describe this incredible photography book. I kept turning page after page of pictures of high school and college athletes from every possible sport and from around the United States and Canada who wanted to be seen as the powerful athletes they are rather than the stereotypes perceived by many. Along with the pictures, I was thoroughly engrossed in reading the story of Jeff Sheng and then three fellow athletes who all self-identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender. It's an amazing book that deserves to be seen by all as it will surely shatter the image and place of the LGBTQ community within the athletic world.
For decades, it was always assumed that people who identify as gay, lesbian, transgender, or bisexual had no place on the field, the diamond, the rink, the course, the pool, the track, or the court. Those men and women who did find themselves with a passion to hold a racket, throw a ball, dive into the water, block a goal, put on skates, or run a distance weren't made to feel welcome or had to hide who they truly were from teammates, coaches, family, and fans. The mental toll it took weighed heavily, often causing them to leave behind the sport they loved the most and the place that gave them the most peace of mind during the times when they were trying to find self-acceptance and figure who they authentically are.
Over the course of time, though, things have changed. Athletes from all sporting areas and ranging from the amateur to the professional have started to make their voices heard, have started demanding the equal treatment they deserve in society and in the sporting arena, as well as the respect they rightly deserve. They have also shouted to the world that the image you may have of gays and lesbians is narrow and simplistic. The 200 collected photos in this book surely back this up.
This book belongs in the libraries of high school and colleges everywhere as it provides a powerful message of belonging, hope, strength, power, and athleticism. It's truly a marvelous thing to see!
For decades, it was always assumed that people who identify as gay, lesbian, transgender, or bisexual had no place on the field, the diamond, the rink, the course, the pool, the track, or the court. Those men and women who did find themselves with a passion to hold a racket, throw a ball, dive into the water, block a goal, put on skates, or run a distance weren't made to feel welcome or had to hide who they truly were from teammates, coaches, family, and fans. The mental toll it took weighed heavily, often causing them to leave behind the sport they loved the most and the place that gave them the most peace of mind during the times when they were trying to find self-acceptance and figure who they authentically are.
Over the course of time, though, things have changed. Athletes from all sporting areas and ranging from the amateur to the professional have started to make their voices heard, have started demanding the equal treatment they deserve in society and in the sporting arena, as well as the respect they rightly deserve. They have also shouted to the world that the image you may have of gays and lesbians is narrow and simplistic. The 200 collected photos in this book surely back this up.
This book belongs in the libraries of high school and colleges everywhere as it provides a powerful message of belonging, hope, strength, power, and athleticism. It's truly a marvelous thing to see!
Displaying 1 of 1 review