Episode 71: Being True to Yourself and Fun Off Season Internships with Layshia Clarendon

Layshia Clarendon played for the Indiana Fever for three seasons before Atlanta drafted her this year. An outspoken advocate for LGBTQ rights, Clarendon was named 2015 Outsports Female Hero of the Year.  Clarendon developed her candid nature and her playing ability at California after growing up in San Bernardino. As a point guard for the Bears, she served as a major piece in the team's rejuvenation. After the team barely went .500 her sophomore season, the team won 57 games in her final two seasons, which included a Final Four run in her senior campaign. Basketball wasn't the sole focus for Clarendon at Cal. She started going to church early on and took to heart the words of her pastor, who told her everyone has a story to tell. She became an active voice to those around her and was a member of the Gay Straight Alliance at Cal as well as Athlete Ally, which works to end homophobia in the sports world, on the national stage. She has had many speaking engagements thanks to her activism, which has included panel talks at the Human Rights Campaign in Atlanta and the Sports Business Journal in New York. She also writes frequently, which included a sports blog and a piece in Esquire two weeks ago about the LGBT movement's lack of emphasis on transgender individuals.