I was the embodiment of collegiate machismo. I drank too much beer after playing in football games. I had sex with too many women. When I did not get what I wanted, I threw fits and intimidated people.

Since my days as a college athlete at the University of Maryland and elite level athlete on the USA wrestling ladder I have acted as if the hetero-normative culture — a philosophy that assumes everyone is heterosexual — was also my culture. In the everyday world, which promotes hegemonic masculinity, it has proven to be very beneficial for me. I can “pass” as a straight guy, entering various spaces without issue and attending family events, such as weddings and funerals, without my presence upsetting the flow of conversation or comfort level of attendees. So, yes, I benefit from straight privilege, despite being a gay black man.

But when it comes to the rights of others, I can't afford to be silent. Neither can you. LGBT Americans in 33 states are not fully protected from discrimination, and some states are moving backward in terms of anti-discrimination efforts. It is time that Black America wakes up and recognizes that God will not punish us if we speak out about the liberties and freedoms of others.

Do the black males in America who claim to support religious freedoms and protections know what they are really embracing? The “freedom” — largely granted to white males already in power — is to discriminate against me. Have we, as black males, forgotten the freedom riders who were beaten while trying to fight for racial equality? Have we forgotten the years it took for black and brown boys and girls to drink from the “white” water fountain and to go to the same schools? Have we become so detached that we now are negligent in fighting for the freedoms of those who are just as oppressed as us?

Black America, it's time to realize that the fight for justice is not just about racial equality, it's about ending discrimination at every corner of our society. Ending discrimination involves being politically visible and working to find solutions. It's time that we redefine manhood and what it is to be a black male in America. It's time we understand that being a man is not just about paying bills, having and taking care of babies. It's about valuing, including and engaging those different from us.

As men, regardless of the God we believe in, we must treat all people with respect and love. It's time that we join our brothers and sisters in the LGBT community in their fight for equality. I have called upon some of my esteemed friends in the sports world — Jason Collins, Aaron Maybin, Michael Sam, Derrick Gordan, D'Qwell Jackson and Shawn Merriman — to stand in solidarity as we fight to end discrimination across this country. It is my aim for us, as black men, to walk side by side with those who are oppressed.

We cannot fight for one form of equality and leave the rest of the world out of that conversation. I thank the mayor of Baltimore for stepping up to ban employee travel to states where discrimination is legal on the basis of so-called religious freedom. I hope that others take notice and divert conferences and events here that might have otherwise gone to anti-LGBT states. Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake sent a public message in her decree; it's time for the rest of us to step up and do our parts as well.

Akil Patterson is the youth programs director and a community liaison for the Athlete Ally. His email is Akil.Patterson@AthleteAlly.org.