Jesse Klug has played at the highest youth levels in the state of Washington. The Sammamish native and Overlake High School grad was once with the Sounders Academy and then the North Sound SeaWolves. Now he’s playing soccer at Bucknell. He’s also stepped out and into the spotlight as a gay soccer player. Today on SB Nation’s OutSports blog he offers an open letter where he talks about being gay and playing soccer.

“I feel compelled to write this letter with the intent of opening a dialogue. I am out to my team, family, friends, and now to you,” he writes near the beginning.

Then later:

“Sexual orientation should not be a defining characteristic of a person. It can certainly be important and should not be ignored, but it should not be overemphasized either. One perk of being an gay soccer player is that my teammates don’t really have the option to see me any differently. While being gay could have a larger impact on friends outside of the team (who aren’t by nature forced to spend copious amounts of time with me), most of the time I spend with my teammates is on the field. In that context, sexual orientation holds absolutely zero significance. My teammates view me as an athlete; as part of their team working towards the same goals. We struggle and succeed together. And although this might be specific to teams (athletic or otherwise), the notion doesn’t need to be. Being gay is part of who I am; it is not what I am. Too often we see people as their labels. Try seeing beyond that flat impression, to the parts of their being that truly define them. What are their interests, fears, worries, and hopes? What is their perspective? Recognizing everyone as an individual person worthy of love is a vital step in treating people equally and respectfully.”

Klug was written about in June of 2012 for a different moment he stood up for his personal beliefs. It was in a SounderatHeart.com feature about leaving academy soccer to play for his high school in a story ironically entitled “The Legacy of Jesse Klug.” It details Klug’s strength to walk away from the Sounders Academy after they adopted (along with US Youth Soccer) the rule that academy players could no longer play high school soccer.

Now stepping up for his beliefs on what is likely to be an even larger stage, Klug has given Washington state soccer another reason to be proud.

“I would like to extend a message of hope and motivation to those who are fighting in favor of equal rights and acceptance,” Klug says in his letter. “Nothing happens overnight. I think we are all aware of that. But we must all remember that everyone, on all “sides” of this conversation, deserve to be treated with respect. Because calling people heartless bigots does not accomplish anything…We must love our enemies like our friends because that gives us strength, and because it forces them to acknowledge us as equals. ”

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