IT’S 2016, AND COACHES STILL DON’T FEEL COMFORTABLE COMING OUT IN WOMEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL

There are 349 Division I women’s basketball programs in the United States, and only one out lesbian coach is currently at the helm among them.

University of San Francisco head coach Jennifer Azzi, a Stanford alum and former WNBA player, came out last month while introducing Golden State Warriors president Rick Welts at the Anti-Defamation League’s Torch of Liberty Award ceremony in San Francisco.

“I, too, lived a long time not being 100 percent honest,” Azzi said, according to the San Jose Mercury News. “The don’t-ask-don’t-tell kind of thing. And it’s so stupid. I don’t know why we do that.”

It’s 2016. Gay marriage is the law of the land. LGBT characters have prominent roles in television and movies. Professional sports organizations, including the WNBA, have welcomed diversity with open arms. There are more out athletes now than ever before. Yet women’s college basketball seems to lag behind, with recent lawsuits underlining how the sport’s homophobic culture is still a breeding ground for discriminatory recruiting, hiring, and firing practices against gay players and coaches.

Read More: Lyndsey Darcangelo