Coach’s Anti-Gay Comments an ‘Embarrassment’ but Not Fireable Offense
When University of Nebraska-Lincoln assistant football coach Ron Brown stood in front of the Omaha City Council in March to speak against a proposal to protect sexual identity, he was merely exercising his right as a private citizen, he would later say.
It came as no surprise that Brown, an outspoken born-again Christian and a preacher, believes that homosexuality is a sin. But his passionate opposition to the proposed amendment to the city’s anti-discrimination policy raised questions as to whether Brown was really speaking as a citizen.
After all, the university’s own anti-discrimination policy does just what Brown spoke against: It protects students and staff from discrimination based on their sexual orientation.
Adding to the confusion, when addressing the council, Brown gave his address as “One Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska,” home turf of the Nebraska Cornhuskers.
“The question that I have for you all is, like Pontius Pilate, what are you going to do with Jesus?” Brown asked the council. “You will be held to great accountability for the decision that you make. And so, like Pontius Pilate, who didn’t — who kind of waffled around — he wasn’t sure. He knew what to do, I think. But he let political correctedness (sic) shape his thinking.”