At one point in time Chris Kluwe was one of the NFL’s top punters. Then Kluwe’s numbers began to drop, he made some pro gay marriage comments and eventually the Minnesota Vikings drafted his replacement.
Unable to win the punting job in Oakland last season Kluwe sat out all year. He later would claim to have been released by the Vikings due to his gay marriage views.
A swarm of claims and an investigation began. All this has the former punter thinking about a lawsuit says attorney Clayton Halunen.
“It’s transparently obvious to me that the Vikings are covering up the truth,” said Halunen, via KFAN.com. “We have no choice but to litigate at this point. Kluwe willingly cooperated with the Vikings’ investigation – all he ever wanted was for the truth to come out.”
“Minnesota Vikings fans are the real losers in this sad affair,” he said. “The fans deserve to know that what I said about Priefer and the way the Vikings let me go was the truth. I was persecuted and then fired for standing up for what I believe in, all because some small-minded, bigoted people think that homophobia is okay in the NFL. It is not okay, and now it seems like we’ll have to go to court to force the Vikings to admit that.”
Kluwe claims that special teams coach Mike Priefer used slurs and taunts towards him because of his outspoken support for gay marriage.
Kluwe is planning to sue the Vikings for religious discrimination, sexual orientation discrimination, defamation and tortious interference with contractual obligations. His attorney claims he would drop the case if the Vikings make their investigation findings public.
The Vikings say they are not completely done with the investigation.
