The ESPY Awards Provide A Platform For Hope
Last night, the ESPY Awards was platform for yet another powerful speech about acceptance and always fighting through adversity.
For those who don't know what the ESPY Awards are, it's an award show for the best athletes in the world. It's not as well known or talked about as some of the other award shows for singers and actors, but it should be.
Every year award shows such as the Golden Globes, the Emmy Awards, and the "So and So" Choice Awards come and go.
We marvel at the amount of stars in one room. We gaze at what they're wearing. We debate who deserves what award. We throw viewing parties for these award shows.
But the one award show which doesn't seem to get as much hype is the ESPY Awards.
If you're a hardcore sports fan, you may watch it. If you're just a casual sports fan, chances are you won't watch it at all.
It doesn't seem right. Of all the award shows, the ESPY Awards, year in and year out, provide some of the most inspirational speeches and share some sort of story for which everyone can learn something from.
This year it was it was Caitlyn Jenner. Last year it was Stuart Scott and Michael Sam.
All three of them with different stories, yet each had moving, emotional, and inspirational speeches.
Professional athletes and celebrities are held to a high standard in society. They are in the spotlight 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Every move they make will be critiqued and criticized.
But that doesn't change the fact that each one has the ability to influence change and do some good for large groups of people.
That's exactly what the aforementioned Jenner, Scott, and Sam did with their platform.
In a room filled with some of the biggest, fastest, and strongest men and women in the world, those three stood vulnerable on the stage at the ESPY Awards with one goal in mind; to make a change.
Last night, Jenner stood on a public platform for the first time since her transition. At that moment in time, the ESPYs stopped being just an award show and became a stage for learning, understanding, and acceptance.
"It's about what happens from here. It's not just about one person. It's about thousands of people," Jenner said. "It's not just about me, it's about all of us accepting one another. We're all different, that's not a bad thing — that's a good thing."
In 2014, long-time SportsCenter anchor Scott stood on that same stage which Jenner stood on last night.
Scott was in the midst of fighting cancer, and if you would have asked him, he was beating it.
Cancer is one of those things that is incredibly difficult to talk about, yet almost everyone can say they know someone affected by it.
Scott passed away just six months after his emotional speech.
"When you die, it does not mean that you lose to cancer," Scott said. "You beat cancer by how you live, why you live, and in the manner in which you live."
Jenner, Scott, and Sam are not the only one's going through adversity, but they are a face and figure for others fighting the same battles to look at for hope and guidance.
Sam stood on the ESPY Stage last year with a very similar message as Jenner: accepting one another as who they are.
When Sam came out as gay, it was just before the NFL Draft. He became the first openly gay player to be drafted into the league.
His message was simple. His message needed to be shared. His message was important.
"To anyone out there, especially young people, feeling like they don't fit in and will never be accepted," Sam said. "Please know this, great things can happen when you have the courage to be yourself."
If you haven't seen any of these speeches, watch them now. Have a tissue ready because they are powerful and emotional.
These three people have not been the only ones to stand up on the ESPY stage to share a story or message, there have been many others, but almost all have a common theme.
In the words of college basketball coach Jim Valvano at the 1993 ESPY Awards:
"Don't give up, don't ever give up."