I Think There Are A Lot Of

The "r" Word [racism] Is A Scary Word To Me - I Don't Like To Say It. I'm Not Trying To Say It Doesn't Exist. It's Incredibly Inflammatory And Invites A Lot Of Awful Mistakes And Injustices That Have Happened And Still Do Happen. It's A Word That Has Been Thrown Around In A Way That Incites A Lot Of Bad Feelings In Most People.

Soccer Has Given Me A Place To Express Myself, Fully And Openly. To Not Be Shy. To Feel. To Be Crazy. To Try Things I Might Not Try. To Be Honest In Relationships. To Make Mistakes And Realize That They're Not Life-shattering.

And I Remember How Proud I Was To Put On My Training Jersey And Go Out On The Field. Making It Back To That Environment Was For Me My Greatest Moment, Because Somebody Had Told Me I Couldn't Do It And I Never Gave Up On Myself, The Game And My Teammates.

I Think There Are A Lot Of Things That Soccer Does In The Communities That Transcend The Soccer Field.

The Thing I Can Say About Japan Is They Were Progressive For A Country That Is Very Male Dominant.