Enter
B
Q&A
HUFFINGTON
08.12.12
EN COHEN may be one of the highest-scoring players in British
Union rugby history, but to his legions of gay fans, he’s best known
for taking off his shirt. The 33-year-old athlete, who is straight
and married with twin daughters, most recently stripped down for
a new underwear line, proceeds from which benefit the Ben Cohen StandUp Foundation. But Cohen hopes that fans will listen
as closely as they’re looking: in 2011, he retired from professional
sports to launch the foundation, which is focused on combating
homophobia and bullying against LGBT youth. Cohen spoke with
Huffington about his foundation’s goals, his gay icon status and, of
course, those sinewy underwear ads. — Curtis M. Wong
As an athlete and public figure, you
can choose to support any number
of worthy causes. Why is combating
homophobia and anti-gay bullying so
important to you? It’s about being a
champion on the field and off the
field, and that’s where a lot of
sportsmen really let themselves
down. We want to be on the right
side of history with the efforts
for equality and respect for all.
What I’d experienced in my family [after the death of his father,
who was beaten trying to break
up a bar fight] was really devastating. Our pain and our suffering came from the hands of other
people, and a lot of the pain my
gay fans were expressing on my
Facebook page was similar to
what we’d experienced. Bullying
was no different.