Just hearing the word Nike and LGBT together caught my attention. I had no idea what a Nike LGBT Sports Summit would consist of. All I knew is that I was going to be in the presence of many organizations that are leading the way for LGBT equality. All of these organizations were amazing and well established and at this point all I was thinking was, “I don’t even have an organization, what am I doing here? The only thing I have going for myself are my speaking engagements to educate athletes, students, and staff on transgender issues.”

The first day started bright and early at 8:30 am inside Nike headquarters. We broke into groups to talk about our own organizations and what our own goals were. The members in my group where Alison Doerfler the executive director of Stand Up Foundation, Anna Aagenes with Our group, Jim Buzinski with Outsports.com, and Sue Rankin with Penn State University. Although I was feeling out of place, Sue Rankin soon reminded me that I was indeed there for a reason. As she stood in front of the whole room and summarized what we talked about she let everyone know that my soon to be organization “IMEnough” would be geared towards empowerment of the trans community and creating transgender visibility through photography, performance art, and storytelling. My organization will stand for what I believe in and that is all that matters. I was in the right place at the right time and I needed the summit just as much as it needed me. Over the next two days we would be brainstorming and collaborating with each other to figure out how to create a safe space to eliminate homophobia, transphobia, and bullying in all levels of athletics.

2011 was a watershed year in the fight to end homophobia and transphobia in sports. We have finally reached a tipping point when anti-gay slurs, silence and discrimination are no longer the accepted norms in sports. Increasing numbers of LGBT athletes are coming out, and many more straight allies are speaking up to support them. Joining established athletics-focused groups like NCLR sports project and Outsports.com, LGBT advocacy groups like GLSEN, It Gets Better and GLAAD are widening their focus to include sports. It seems as though more new organizations are also coming forward to fight discrimination in sports every few weeks. Each organization is doing something pivotal in this fight. Many work with high school sports, college althetics or professional sports; Furthermore focus is put on legal advocacy, outreach, and media.

However, homophobia and transphobia are persistent problems in sports that have silenced gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender athletes and coaches for much of the last century. Thanks to pioneers like former NFL player Dave Kopay, tennis great Martina Navartilova, and transgender professional tennis player Renee Richards, the climate for LGBT athletes and coaches began to shift three decades ago, unfortunately only marginally.

The current changes are riveting and reflect a shift in the culture of sports. Once dominated by discrimination and silence, a new climate of support and openness for LGBT athletes is emerging. The increasing numbers of groups focused on making sports a positive environment for everyone who wants to play or coach are catalysts in the pace of this ever-changing problem. However, our effectiveness in ending homophobia in sports has been limited because we are not working together efficiently. Despite being led by athletes and coaches whose success is built on communication and teamwork, most of these advocacy groups are not talking to one another. We all share the same goal, but we have not been playing like a team.

On June 14 in Braverton, Oregon, that will change. Thirty leaders who are actively advocating for LGBT equality in sports will come together at Nike LGBT Sports Summit. The goal of this ground-breaking event is to create a team game plan for ending homophobia and transphobia in sport that takes advantage of the strengths in each organization. The aim is to increase our ability to collaborate on bringing about the change we all are committed to.

To maximize the outcome of our collaborative efforts, we envision this summit as the first of an annual event. Our intention is to include other organizations and individuals who share our goals as we extend our network over the coming year. The 2013 summit will be open to everyone who is dedicated to the end of homophobia and transphobia in sports.

For the better part of three days, summit participants will identify and commit to completing specific action plans toward ending anti-LGBT discrimmination in sports. They will also forge inter-group relationships to carry out these action plans. The organizations involved with this inaugural summit include the American Alliance for Health Physical Education Recreation and Dance, Athlete Ally, Br{ach the Silence, Campus Pride, ESPN, Fearless campaign, Federation of Gay Games, Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), Gay Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN), It Gets Better campaign, National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR), National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), Nike, Our Group, Outsports, Standup Foundation, and You Can Play project.

Thanks to Nike's commitment to making sports a respectful and inclusive experience for LGBT athletes, we have an opportunity to make the next 12 months an even more amazing year of progress for LGBT athletes and coaches at all levels of sports. We're also blessed to have the support of online sports leader SB Nation and worldwide tech leader Microsoft. The dedication of these companies, along with the organizations involved, opens an opportunity like never before to lake equality in sports a reality for all.

We hope that pioneers of our movement will be proud to see the progress we are forging in the foundation of their courage and determination. Together, we will end homophobia and transphobia in sports. We hope you will join us in the coming year.

Compiled from release