NO HOLDS BARRED

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman once again spoke with MMA fighter Fallon Fox.

The first openly transgender MMA fighter, she is the subject, along with openly gay college basketball player Terrence Lamar Clemens, of a new documentary "Game Face".

Directed by Michiel Thomas, this film documents the inspiring coming out stories of these athletes.

We spoke with Fallon Fox by phone Thursday.

"'Game Face' is a documentary about LGBTQ athletes, what happens to them before they come out and during the process of when they come out as LGBTQ athletes in sports," she said.

"We have been filming for about a year and a half, almost two years with production to get this project complete. So I'm very happy that it's coming to full fruition as of late. So It's making its tour around film festivals, so people can check it out there as it makes its tour around those festivals. And you can also catch it whenever we find a distributor and put it out for the mass public."

We also discussed why acceptance and understanding of transgender people and athletes are growing, why she is currently not signed by any MMA promotion despite her 5-1 pro record, why fight promoters who refuse to sign her will be judged badly by history, the prospects for her getting signed to fight, her many other activities including writing, and much more.

"Game Face" is an important and worthy documentary which is both enlightening and moving, and is heartily recommended to be seen.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The PodOmatic Podcast Player for iOS is available for free on the App Store.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at AmericanTopTeam.com.

Defense Soap, an effective, deep penetrating body soap with natural antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial soap ingredients. Defense Soap is the best cleansing body soap for men and women athletes who are involved in contact sports such as MMA, wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and judo, to help their antifungal, anti-ringworm, anti-jock itch strategy. Check out their web site, at DefenseSoap.com.

Labels: athletes, Eddie Goldman, Fallon Fox, Game Face, homophobia, LGBT, MMA, No Holds Barred, sports, Terrence Lamar Clemens, trans, transgender, transphobia

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman once again spoke with MMA fighter Fallon Fox.

Now with a record of 5-1 in professional MMA, her latest victory came this past Saturday, September 13, with a ground-and-pound TKO win over Tamikka Brents at 2:17 of the first round on the Capital City Cage Wars show at the Prairie Capital Convention Center in Springfield, Illinois.

We spoke with her by phone Tuesday about this fight, her plans in MMA, and how being the first openly transgender MMA fighter has led to her becoming a spokesperson on LGBT and other issues inside and outside sports.

Asked if she believed that she should be fighting in bigger promotional organizations, she replied with a laugh, "Of course I belong in bigger promotions." She noted how some promotions have fighters with records of "0 and 0 and 0 and 2-1," and "no professional wins whatsoever."

She added, "And I'm 5-1," again chuckling.

We also discussed how the opponents of her fighting in women's MMA have been "proven wrong," why "they can't stop me," how the only people left opposing her right to fight are "the bigots and the ignorant," how she has adjusted since her only loss last year, her writing on many issues for various media outlets, and much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at AmericanTopTeam.com.

Defense Soap, an effective, deep penetrating body soap with natural antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial soap ingredients. Defense Soap is the best cleansing body soap for men and women athletes who are involved in contact sports such as MMA, wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and judo, to help their antifungal, anti-ringworm, anti-jock itch strategy. Check out their web site, at DefenseSoap.com.

Takedown Wrestling Media, America's wrestling TV and radio shows, which are hosted by founder Scott Casber, and have been airing on radio and Internet for over 17 years. Takedown Media produces a weekly TV program seen in 54 million homes in the U.S. on DirecTV, Dish Network, and cable affiliates around the country, called Takedown TV. Takedown Media also produces the weekly USA Wrestling TV show for the governing body of the sport, USA Wrestling. For more information, go to TakedownRadio.com.

Labels: athletes, Eddie Goldman, Fallon Fox, homophobia, LGBT, MMA, No Holds Barred, sports, trans, transgender, transphobia

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman once again spoke with MMA fighter Fallon Fox.

Since coming out in March 2013 as the first openly transgender MMA fighter, she has been the focus of much attention both inside and outside the combat sports. She now regularly writes for Time.com, the web site of "Time", as well as other sites. She was recently named to the prestigious Trans 100 list, has been profiled in numerous publications including in a cover story in the "Chicago Reader", and has been speaking at various events.

In MMA, she rebounded from her first loss in October 2013 to defeat Heather Bassett by a second-round armbar submission at XFO 50 on March 21, 2014, at the UIC Pavilion in Chicago, Illinois, thus upping her pro record to 4-1.

We spoke with Fallon Fox by phone Saturday.

Discussing the recent increase in visibility of trans people and the growth of the struggle for trans rights, she said, "It's like it all just started rising up in the last year or two, right? Like a lot of trans rights, LGBT rights, have just been happening. And there's a lot of faces, a lot of new things, a lot of trans faces have been coming out lately in the public light. So we have athletes, actors, models, we have doctors, we have people who are doing a lot of things in the trans community, and the community at large, as trans people."

She stressed, "We're all over. And it's a really good time, I think, for trans people."

We discussed how trans people's "silence hasn't been helping us"; why trans people like herself are "just like everyone else"; the growth of the Chicago area, where she is based, as a center of activity for the trans community; her growing acceptance in the MMA community; the adjustments she made in her latest MMA fight; her plans for the future; and much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

ONE Fighting Championship. ONE FC is Asia's largest and most prestigious mixed martial arts event. ONE FC features the best Asian fighters and has initiated the ONE Asia Partnership Network, which includes most of the major MMA promotions and MMA gyms in Asia. For more information, go to their web site, at ONEFC.com.

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.

Labels: athletes, Chicago, Eddie Goldman, Fallon Fox, homophobia, LGBT, MMA, No Holds Barred, sports, trans, transphobia

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman spoke with Wade Davis, the executive director of the You Can Play Project.

You Can Play is, according to its web site, an organization "dedicated to ensuring equality, respect and safety for all athletes, without regard to sexual orientation." Its slogan is: "Gay athletes. Straight allies. Teaming up for respect."

The issues of respect and fairness for LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) athletes are major ones being discussed in world sport, from the controversy over Russia's law against so-called "gay propaganda" passed shortly before the start of the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, to the debate in the combat sports involving transgender MMA fighter Fallon Fox and gay boxer Orlando Cruz. These are issues we addressed with Wade Davis. We spoke with him by phone Monday.

"One of the first things that we try to do at You Can Play is create a conversation," he said. "Whether you're someone who is against the idea of playing with an LGBT person or you're for it, our goal is to approach it from the perspective that we don't believe that people are inherently homophobic."

He continued, "Now there are definitely some who are, but we don't believe that the majority of people are, so we're willing to say, 'Hey, tell me what your beliefs are. I'll tell you mine. There is no right or wrong, but our goal is to really have a conversation.' If there is at least the option of having a conversation, then there is a chance that you're looking to be educated and receive some information that could potentially make you more or less likely to engage with helping to create a space for an LGBT person to play sports. We don't believe that telling someone what they believe is right or wrong helps to facilitate a conversation."

We discussed how to approach both sports organizations and fans on these issues, combat sports and views of what masculinity means, what people can do to fight homophobia and transphobia, and much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

LenneHardt.com, the web site of the world's greatest ring announcer, Lenne Hardt. Need a unique and cool combat sports-related gift? At LenneHardt.com, you can order personalized messages, wedding calls, ringtones, phone answering messages, and more, all recorded by Lenne herself, in the style of your choice. For more information, go to LenneHardt.com.

ONE Fighting Championship. ONE FC is Asia's largest and most prestigious mixed martial arts event. ONE FC features the best Asian fighters and has initiated the ONE Asia Partnership Network, which includes most of the major MMA promotions and MMA gyms in Asia. For more information, go to their web site, at ONEFC.com.

GrappleGnostic, sponsored by Defense Soap. Where the will to win meets the power of knowledge. Features, interviews, analysis, health tips, and information on wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and all the grappling arts, written by some of the best writers and experts in the world. Check out their web site, a http://defensesoap.com/grapplegnostic.

Defense Soap, an effective, deep penetrating body soap with natural antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial soap ingredients. Defense Soap is the best cleansing body soap for men and women athletes who are involved in contact sports such as MMA, wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and judo, to help their antifungal, anti-ringworm, anti-jock itch strategy. Check out their web site, at http://defensesoap.com.

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.

Labels: boxing, combat sports, Eddie Goldman, Fallon Fox, homophobia, LGBT, MMA, No Holds Barred, Olympics, Sochi, transphobia, Wade Davis, wrestling, You Can Play Project

(Photo of Hudson Taylor, Fallon Fox, and Brendon Ayanbadejo receiving 2013 Emery Awards, courtesy of Fallon Fox)

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman spoke with Fallon Fox, the first openly transgender MMA fighter; Thomas Krever, the CEO of the Hetrick-Martin Institute (HMI); and Brendon Ayanbadejo, a three-time Pro Bowl NFL player, a member of the world champion Baltimore Ravens who won Super Bowl XLVII, and a long-time advocate for equal rights.

What they have in common is that they all were involved in the 2013 Emery Awards, presented by the Hetrick-Martin Institute, a professional provider of social support and programming for at-risk lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or questioning (LGBTQ) youth. These awards were presented at an event in New York on Wednesday, November 13. Fallon Fox and Brendon Ayanbadejo were among the athletes receiving these awards, as well as Hudson Taylor, a three-time All-American wrestler at the University of Maryland who is now a volunteer assistant coach for the Columbia University wrestling team and is the founder and executive director of Athlete Ally, a nonprofit organization focused on ending homophobia and transphobia in sports by educating allies in the athletic community and empowering them to take a stand. Also receiving awards were Chelsea Clinton, vice chair of the Clinton Foundation, and several other individuals.

The Emery Awards are given to individuals and corporations that exemplify HMI's mission of providing a safe and supportive environment for all young people regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity.

We spoke with Thomas Krever and Brendon Ayanbadejo right before the awards event on November 13, on the red carpet outside Cipriani Wall Street. We spoke with Fallon Fox by phone Wednesday, November 27.

Saying that she had a "wonderful time" at this event, Fallon Fox, in our discussion, raised some of the issues involving the combat sports and the LGBT community.

"I don't think mixed martial arts is very big within the LGBT world. I think it's getting bigger with myself in mixed martial arts and a few other athletes who are lesbian, open lesbian," she said.

There are "LGBT athletes in every sport. We've always been there and always will be. But it's a good thing that a lot of us are coming out now," she said.

And she added, "I hope there's going to be a male gay athlete that comes out in the future."

We also discussed her plans to return to action next year after suffering her first loss in MMA, her plans to go on the public speaking circuit, and much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

LenneHardt.com, the web site of the world's greatest ring announcer, Lenne Hardt. Need a unique and cool combat sports-related gift? At LenneHardt.com, you can order personalized messages, wedding calls, ringtones, phone answering messages, and more, all recorded by Lenne herself, in the style of your choice. For more information, go to LenneHardt.com.

ONE Fighting Championship. ONE FC is Asia's largest and most prestigious mixed martial arts event. ONE FC features the best Asian fighters and has initiated the ONE Asia Partnership Network, which includes most of the major MMA promotions and MMA gyms in Asia. For more information, go to their web site, at ONEFC.com.

GrappleGnostic, sponsored by Defense Soap. Where the will to win meets the power of knowledge. Features, interviews, analysis, health tips, and information on wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and all the grappling arts, written by some of the best writers and experts in the world. Check out their web site, a http://defensesoap.com/grapplegnostic.

Defense Soap, an effective, deep penetrating body soap with natural antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial soap ingredients. Defense Soap is the best cleansing body soap for men and women athletes who are involved in contact sports such as MMA, wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and judo, to help their antifungal, anti-ringworm, anti-jock itch strategy. Check out their web site, at http://defensesoap.com.

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.

Labels: Brendon Ayanbadejo, Eddie Goldman, Emery Awards, Fallon Fox, Hetrick-Martin Institute, homophobia, LGBT, MMA, NFL, No Holds Barred, sports, Thomas Krever, transphobia

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman spoke with Hudson Taylor, the founder and executive director of Athlete Ally.

Athlete Ally is a nonprofit organization focused on ending homophobia and transphobia in sports by educating allies in the athletic community and empowering them to take a stand.

A three-time All-American wrestler at the University of Maryland, Hudson Taylor is now a volunteer assistant coach for the Columbia University wrestling team.

On Wednesday, November 13, he will be one of the recipients of an Emery Award, presented by the Hetrick-Martin Institute, a professional provider of social support and programming for at-risk lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or questioning (LGBTQ) youth.

We spoke with Hudson Taylor by phone Wednesday.

"I founded Athlete Ally about three years ago, shortly after graduating from the University of Maryland," he said. While still wrestling at Maryland in his senior year, "I decided to start speaking out about homophobia in sports and my opinions about it. So I actually started the season wearing a Human Rights Campaign sticker on my headgear. One, because I thought it looked cool," he said with a laugh. "Two, because I thought it would really start a conversation that I didn't see occurring in the sports world."

And wrestling, he believes, is a great venue in which to speak up for all forms of equality.

"I think that wrestling is a unique sport in its diversity. It's one of the only sports where you can really be any size, any body type, and really be successful at an elite level," he said. "It's pure in a lot of ways, because you don't need to rely on anyone but yourself and what you bring to the mat."

He also is outspoken on the various forms of abuse which have been aimed at transgender MMA fighter Fallon Fox. "It's a real shame what Fallon Fox has had to put up with," he said.

We also discussed how Athlete Ally aids the battle against homophobia and transphobia in sports, what non-LGBT people can do to aid this fight, the support Athlete Ally has gotten from organizations including the NCAA and USA Wrestling, the situation facing closeted athletes, the fight against anti-LGBT laws in countries like Russia, the outlook for Columbia wrestling this season, and much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

LenneHardt.com, the web site of the world's greatest ring announcer, Lenne Hardt. Need a unique and cool combat sports-related gift? At LenneHardt.com, you can order personalized messages, wedding calls, ringtones, phone answering messages, and more, all recorded by Lenne herself, in the style of your choice. For more information, go to LenneHardt.com.

ONE Fighting Championship. ONE FC is Asia's largest and most prestigious mixed martial arts event. ONE FC features the best Asian fighters and has initiated the ONE Asia Partnership Network, which includes most of the major MMA promotions and MMA gyms in Asia. For more information, go to their web site, at ONEFC.com.

GrappleGnostic, sponsored by Defense Soap. Where the will to win meets the power of knowledge. Features, interviews, analysis, health tips, and information on wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and all the grappling arts, written by some of the best writers and experts in the world. Check out their web site, a http://defensesoap.com/grapplegnostic.

Defense Soap, an effective, deep penetrating body soap with natural antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial soap ingredients. Defense Soap is the best cleansing body soap for men and women athletes who are involved in contact sports such as MMA, wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and judo, to help their antifungal, anti-ringworm, anti-jock itch strategy. Check out their web site, at http://defensesoap.com.

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.

Labels: Athlete Ally, Columbia, Eddie Goldman, Emery Award, Fallon Fox, Hetrick-Martin Institute, homophobia, Hudson Taylor, LGBT, Maryland, MMA, NCAA, No Holds Barred, Olympics, Russia, sports, transphobia, wrestling

[The following article was written on April 27, 2007, for a mixed martial arts magazine. It was not printed by it (you know who you are), since they said they did not want something so “negative”. Now that the controversy over the continued bigotry, homophobia, and intolerance promoted by the president of the so-called “Ultimate” Fighting Championship has finally become a major issue, you, too, share blame for not allowing someone like myself a platform to speak out against this idiocy. – Eddie Goldman]

Can There Be Decency and Tolerance in Mixed Martial Arts?
by Eddie Goldman

When Esera Tuaolo, an NFL defensive tackle for five teams in nine seasons who retired after the 1999 season, publicly stated in 2002 that he was gay, the league had a decision to make: Embrace him, ignore him, or condemn him.

Their answer, at least officially, and despite muted grumbling from some quarters, was seen at the 2006 rookie symposium. There Tuaolo spoke to the rookies as part of a panel discussing the issue of diversity in the NFL. ESPN.com quoted NFL vice president of player and employee development Mike Haynes as saying that when he took that job, “one of the things I wanted to really stress was tolerance.”

In February of this year, former NBA center John Amaechi, who played five seasons with Orlando, Utah, and Cleveland, and retired in 2003, also announced that he is gay. NBA commissioner David Stern told The Associated Press, “We have a very diverse league. The question at the NBA is always, ‘Have you got game?’ That’s it, end of inquiry.”

In 2005, the acclaimed documentary “Ring Of Fire,” focusing on former welterweight and middleweight boxing champion Emile Griffith, was shown on the USA Network, and re-released in 2007 on the MSG Network. Besides recounting the third, tragic fight between Griffith and Benny “Kid” Paret in 1962, which led to Paret’s death, one prominent theme was Griffith’s sexuality. Many boxing insiders have long believed that Griffith is gay, and the documentary recounts how in 1992, upon leaving a gay bar in Manhattan, Griffith was attacked by a gang of thugs who beat him so badly that he almost died while in the hospital.

Today, Griffith, now 69, is a regular at ringside at New York boxing events and the annual International Boxing Hall of Fame festivities in Canastota, New York, and is always introduced and greeted by a hearty round of cheers.

Contrast these attempts at decency and tolerance, as belated and limited as they are, in these other sports with the milieu and, if we must use the word, culture in MMA.

Earlier this year, UFC president Dana White was a guest on shock jock Scott Ferrall’s show on Sirius Satellite Radio. The discussion turned to White’s rival, then-Pride USA executive Jerry Millen.

With a live audience cheering him on, White called Millen a “fuckin’ homo” and asked Ferrall, “What fuckin’ gay bar did you two meet in?” More of the same followed.

Shortly after radio host Don Imus was fired by CBS radio and MSNBC cable for his racist and sexist comments about the Rutgers women’s basketball team, a post, purportedly from a fighter, appeared on a popular online MMA message board repeating Imus’s precise words to describe a forthcoming opponent who is African-American, like most of the Rutgers women’s team. While Internet message boards in general are too often receptacles of what is not even fit for sewers, the implication here was that what is considered disgusting, despicable, and inhuman by almost everyone else is just fine in MMA.

Countless other examples of such negative behavior and attitudes can be cited, especially on the UFC’s heavily-edited “reality” series on Spike TV. This program first became a hit by being placed directly after the highly-rated Monday night show of the W“W”E, thus appealing to those who crave sociopathic spectacles but also wanted to see some real fights. On the UFC show they got both, beginning with one fighter pissing in another’s bed.

There are many reasons people are attracted to MMA. Mostly it reflects just who they are before they discovered this genre. If they were amoral punks or even criminal elements who simply liked to see others get hurt and reveled in naked violence and the spilling of blood, that was what they sought here. If they were greedy, cold manipulators who wanted to have fighters smash each other’s bodies while they received the greatest financial rewards, this was for them. If they were sports fans, athletes, or even suits who were disgruntled with the endless scandals, corruption, and mediocrity in so many mainstream sports, here was an edgy place to go. If they were combat sports or martial arts aficionados who loved both competition and the demonstration of world-class techniques, that was here, too. If they were from the world of amateur wrestling and yearned for a real, professional league, this was the closest thing to it, especially with the success in MMA of so many top wrestlers. And, of course, there are numerous others, including that loud band of fans of the staged pro “wrestling” who want MMA to sink to the depths of this “sports entertainment” while still running shoots.

The outcome of the battle between these types of groups will determine whether MMA can, like so many other sports, begin to embrace decency and tolerance. It is a more complex version of the battle in the mid-1990s over whether it should be a sport or a spectacle.

These days the battle lines are about positioning the sport more along the lines of, as our friends in Brazil call it, arte suave, or the soft art, or something vulgar, crude, ugly, nasty, and, thus, socially dysfunctional.

This is entirely different from the issue of financial and TV ratings’ success. Jerry Springer, Vince McMahon, ad nauseam have become quite wealthy peddling garbage. The question is whether MMA will play a socially positive or negative role.

Decency and tolerance are not incompatible with fighting sports. Instruction in most martial arts and combat sports emphasizes values like respect, honor, dedication, hard work, modesty, honesty, cooperation, and discipline. It is mostly on the professional level, where the exploiters abound, that the culture of greed, selfishness, disrespect, dishonesty, arrogance, and parasitism often flourishes.

So can there be decency and tolerance in MMA? One would think that with the current alignment of forces, they are the underdogs. But who would have thought back when Emile Griffith was in his prime as a fighter, that with his sexuality more or less common knowledge, he would now be feted as a legend?

This battle over decency and tolerance is still raging. What will YOU do about it?

Labels: Dana White, decency, Eddie Goldman, homophobia, mixed martial arts, MMA, sexism, tolerance, UFC