The Connecticut Sun held their third annual pride night on Friday. Pride Night is much more than just another themed night for the WNBA, especially for the Connecticut Sun.
"We talk about being diverse, being inclusive and I think it’s so important because our league is all about that,” head coach of the Sun, Curt Miller, said.
He is the first gay male professional head coach. "I've fought to have pride nights and bring that into the marketing plans,” said Miller, but he didn’t always want to push that envelope.
Miller kept his sexuality to himself and only the people close to him for 20 years. He said, "I wanted to be the successful head coach that happened to be gay, not the gay head coach that happened to be successful.”
Being a gay male, Miller says he grew up fearful of what his advancement could be in sports. That feeling didn't go away until he landed his first head coaching position in 2001 at Bowling Green.
“Throughout the interview process, they knew about my partner, they knew about my kids and I was interviewing, being myself,’ Miller said.
He says he sometimes feels like he has failed the LGBTQ community, but he is now ready to speak up for himself and ones alike. “I’m comfortable in my skin now,’ said Miller. “I want to be a role that if you want to be a coach you can rise up through the ranks and be in leadership positions,” said Miller.
