Chris Kluwe Wins A Webby: NFL Players Wins the Super Bowl Of the Internet

Culture

Minnesota Vikings punter Chris Kluwe may have never won a Super Bowl but as a very active user of the internet, he has just won the equivalent of one. On Tuesday the winners of the Webbys, awards recognizing excellence on the internet were released. Kluwe won the Webby for Athlete of the Year in recognition of his online support of same-sex marriage.

The internet is not a new area for Kluwe, who has had an active presence through social media networks such as Twitter. Kluwe has been one of the most vocal athletes in support of same-sex marriage online, setting the standard for athletes getting involved in issues they are passionate about. 

Kluwe has written online in support of same sex marriage, in a funny yet pointed piece for Deadspin,

"I can assure you that gay people getting married will have zero effect on your life. They won’t come into you house and steal you children. They won’t magically turn you into a lustful cockmonster. They won’t even overthrow the government in an orgy of hedonistic debauchery because all of a sudden they have the same legal rights as the other 90 percent of the population."

But Kluwe did not stop there penning a very thoughtful and heartfelt piece for PolicyMic as well,  

"So, I ask you, please care about Proposition 8, and the narrow-minded shortsightedness it espouses. Please care about same-sex rights, the ability to love who you want instead of who someone else says you should. Please care about everyone’s right to live a happy life free of someone else’s yoke, because if we allow ourselves to become exclusive instead of inclusive, well, I can tell you how that turns out.

"The history books are littered with their bones."

Kluwe also wrote a reflection piece on his same-sex marriage activism for the Huffington Post,

"Why do I speak out in support of gay rights, of all rights to equality? Because if I don't, then who will be left to speak for me?"

Kluwe penned a piece for a local newspaper’s website that defended same-sex marriage as well. In his writing Kluwe eloquently states his support towards same-sex marriage and demonstrates the strength of his convictions.

But Kluwe did not just write on the internet in support of same-sex marriage. In March the Supreme Court heard the case Hollingsworth v. Perry, which sought to strike down California’s anti-same-sex marriage Proposition 8 law. Kluwe filed an amicus brief in support of same-sex marriage along with Baltimore Ravens linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo.

He has even utilized his Twitter in his activism, not shying away from making his views known,

 

Kluwe’s Webby is recognition of him being the most prominent athlete in support of same-sex marriage on-line and off. In an age were sports are having to grapple with the LGBT issues, Chris Kluwe makes for a paragon of how an athlete should act.

Another big winner of was the Obama Campaign who won Breakout of the Year.