By Eryn Mathewson, CNN

(CNN) — Sometimes the hardest news comes at the end of the day.

Late afternoon on May 12, NBA commissioner Adam Silver announced that former NBA player and LGBTQ advocate Jason Collins had died. The 47-year-old had been battling stage 4 glioblastoma, an aggressive and often terminal form of brain cancer, for eight months.

In December, Collins opened up about his treatment and the support he received from his husband, Brunson Green and his family on Instagram.

Collins made history when he came out in 2013, becoming the first active player in the NBA – and in any of the four major men’s professional sports leagues in the US – to come out as gay.

Since his death, tributes have poured in from league executives, activists and athletes across professional sports.

Major League Soccer player Collin Martin called Collins a trailblazer and told USA Today that “without him, I don’t know if the rest of us that came out after him, if it would have been as easy.”

Chris Mosier, an eight-time Team USA competitor and the first known transgender man to represent the United States in international competition, described Collins as “a big brother.”

“Beyond being a great athlete and a ‘first,’ he was a dear friend, husband, brother and son,” Mosier wrote on Instagram. “His smile not only lit up a room, it stayed with your soul long after you left his presence.”

But more than a decade after this groundbreaking announcement, he remains the only active NBA player to say publicly that he is gay.

In 2026, the sports world is grappling with how and whether to support LGBTQ athletes — especially those who compete in men’s sports or athletes who are transgender.

The Door He Opened

The night after Collins died, Charles Barkley reflected on Collins’ decision to come out and the broader culture surrounding LGBTQ athletes.

“Anybody who thinks we ain’t got a bunch of gay players in all sports, they’re just stupid,” Barkley said. “But there is such animosity toward the gay community, and that’s what’s really unfortunate.”

The comments resonated with Hudson Taylor, a former collegiate wrestler and founder of Athlete Ally, a nonprofit working to make sports more inclusive for LGBTQ athletes.

Taylor worked with Collins on several of the NBA’s LGBTQ inclusion efforts, including encouraging player participation in Pride Nights. They led trainings for incoming NBA players and were part of conversations that helped push the league to move the 2017 All-Star Game out of North Carolina because of the state’s controversial, anti-trans HB2 “bathroom bill.”

“For a closeted athlete, there is a calculation going on between the risk of coming out and the reward of being your authentic self,” Taylor told CNN. “The risk is maybe I won’t get my contract renewed. Maybe I’ll get fewer sponsorships. Maybe my family is kind of homophobic, and they won’t love me as much.”

Taylor said the NBA has been consistent in both its public support for the LGBTQ

By Asim Khan in Quetta, and Sophie Tanno, CNN

(CNN) — At least 23 people have been killed and 71 injured after a suicide bomb attack near a railway station in the southwestern Pakistani city of Quetta on Sunday as a train was passing through.

The militant organization Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), which demands independence from Pakistan’s central government, has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Preliminary findings suggest the explosion was a suicide blast, police said.

Rescue and evacuation operations are still ongoing at the site, according to one emergency worker, Muhammad Zeeshan. Authorities have cordoned off the area while security forces and bomb disposal teams investigate the nature of the explosion.

At least 23 bodies have been recovered from the scene and 71 injured passengers have been transferred to hospitals, rescue officials said. An emergency has been declared in hospitals of Quetta.

Deputy Superintendent Police (City) Qadir Qambrani said that the number of casualties may rise further, adding that more than 100 people are believed to be either dead or injured, though figures are still being verified as rescue operations continue at the derailment site.

Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi visited Quetta in the wake of the attack on Sunday and chaired a meeting alongside the chief minister of Balochistan province, of which Quetta is the capital. During the meeting, Naqvi expressed solidarity with the people, saying that “beasts targeted innocent people with extreme brutality.”

Pakistan’s oil- and mineral-rich Balochistan province has long seen bouts of violence from separatist groups. The BLA have previously claimed responsibility for large-scale bombings and suicide operations in the region.

In February, the BLA claimed responsibility for suicide and gun attacks in Balochistan, which Pakistan’s military said killed at least 33 people.

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By Nina Giraldo, Taylor Romine, Emma Tucker, CNN

(CNN) — As officials in Southern California race to cool down a massive tank filled with a toxic chemical at risk of explosion, tens of thousands of nearby residents have been forced to leave their homes due to health concerns and the risk of catastrophic damage if there is a blast.

About 50,000 people in Orange County have been told to evacuate, with many spending the Memorial Day weekend in shelters, hotels or with friends and family outside the danger zone. Busy tourist destinations like Disneyland and Knott’s Berry Farm are nearby, but not included in the evacuation zone.

The chemical inside the tank, methyl methacrylate, or MMA, can cause respiratory issues and irritation to the skin and eyes upon exposure, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

Here’s what we know about the tank and what authorities are doing to prevent a potential disaster:

Tank began to overheat Thursday

Authorities first responded to GKN Aerospace in Garden Grove Thursday for a vapor release from the tank, Orange County Fire Authority Interim Fire Chief TJ McGovern said Friday. One of the tanks at the facility had overheated and activated a relief valve and sprinklers to cool the tank, he said.

But the valves on the tank were “gummed up” and the temperature inside has continued to rise, reaching as high as 90 degrees, officials have said. Methyl methacrylate’s “happy place” is 50 degrees, Orange County Fire Authority Division Chief and Unified Incident Commander Craig Covey said Friday, noting the increase in temperature could lead to a leak or explosion.

Authorities are now attempting to solidify the chemical inside the tank from the outside inward – a process Orange County Fire Authority Captain Steve Concialdi likened to an ice cube freezing.

“It basically gets hard from the outside first, and inside there is still liquid in there until it completely ices over, and that’s what we’re hoping will happen,” Concialdi said, but he warned the process may not succeed.

“A couple things could happen. … The tank could crack and start spilling out all that 7,000 gallons of chemical, or there could be a catastrophic explosion,” Concialdi told CNN Saturday, noting they are “unsure” of the exact temperature at which the tank could ignite or explode.

“Letting this thing just fail and blow up is unacceptable to us. Our goal is to find something and not allow that happen, not to let it damage our community, not let it damage our environment,” Covey has said.

GKN apologized to evacuated residents and businesses in a statement Saturday and said it is working with emergency services and hazardous materials teams “to ensure the safety of the local community, our employees and everyone else involved.”

“We are working tirelessly with all relevant experts to resolve this situation as safety as possible and in a timely mannger and are deeply grateful for the continued skill and dedication of the Orange County emergency services,” the statement continued.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency in Orange County, saying the safety of its residents is the top priority.

“We are mobilizing every state resource available to support local responders and make sure the community has what they need to stay safe,” Newsom said in a statement.

Some residents reporting symptoms

Exposure to MMA can cause nausea dizziness and “significant irritation” to the lungs and nasal passages, Orange

By Chris Isidore, CNN

(CNN) — Americans are packing the highways and airports this holiday weekend – even with gas and airfares significantly more expensive than last year.

AAA projected that a record number of Americans are traveling this weekend, with 45 million either flying or driving at least 50 miles from home, up from last year’s record of 44.8 million .

“When it comes to travel, it’s one of the only things I’ll treat myself on,” James Smith, who’s flying this weekend, told CNN. Smith spent $550 to fly from New Mexico to Newark, New Jersey, for a holiday weekend with friends at the Jersey shore.

Airfares are up more than 20% compared with last year, according to an estimate from travel booking site Kayak as well as data from major airlines. And gas prices nationally averaged $4.55 a gallon as of the Friday heading into the weekend, up $1.38 from last year and up 53% since the start of the Iran war.

The fact that travel isn’t letting up despite the higher costs isn’t a surprise, said Adam Sacks, president of Tourism Economics, an Oxford Economics consulting company.

“Survey data is indicating there’s a lot of concern about gas prices,” he told CNN. “But there’s a disconnect between how people feel and how they act.”

Historically, gas spikes, like in 2022, haven’t dropped leisure or business travel without other factors also weighing in. That’s partly because the people who struggle the most with higher gas prices or airfares weren’t traveling much to begin with.

“More than half of leisure hotel spending is by people making $150,000 or more,” Sacks said.

But some hotel bookings appear to be softening. Laura Lee Blake told CNN more travelers could be skipping the hotel portion of their stay. Blake is CEO of the Asian American Hotel Owners Association, whose 20,000 members, mostly of South Asian descent, own about 60% of US hotels.

“Travelers maybe skip an overnight stay to save money,” she said. “Maybe they visit family members along the way, or they stay with friends instead of booking a hotel.”

Frantz Simon and his family planned to do just that this weekend.

At a Jersey Turnpike rest stop on Thursday, Frantz, his wife, Mildred, and their two children were packed into a rented SUV to make a 12-hour drive from Long Island to Georgia for his grandson’s high school graduation. He said he wouldn’t consider missing the event: “It’s a family outing,” he said.

But to save money, they’re driving straight through in one day and staying with family in Georgia.

In June Lake, California, near the entrance of Yosemite National Park, Connie Lear manages rental reservations for 42 units, mostly condos and private homes. She said many of her regular renters are cutting back, even if they’re still coming.

“Instead of doing seven days, they’re doing five or four,” she said.

And some people are finding ways to travel without spending more. John Mercagliano, who lives in a Philadelphia suburb, nixed plans to vacation in London with friends next week because of the cost. Instead, he is using his miles on American Airlines to fly to Arizona to vacation with the same friends, who live there.

“I considered it (not traveling at all), but I wanted to see them, and I didn’t want to do nothing at all,” he said.

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By Chris Isidore, CNN

(CNN) — Americans are packing the highways and airports this holiday weekend – even with gas and airfares significantly more expensive than last year.

AAA projected that a record number of Americans are traveling this weekend, with 45 million either flying or driving at least 50 miles from home, up from last year’s record of 44.8 million .

“When it comes to travel, it’s one of the only things I’ll treat myself on,” James Smith, who’s flying this weekend, told CNN. Smith spent $550 to fly from New Mexico to Newark, New Jersey, for a holiday weekend with friends at the Jersey shore.

Airfares are up more than 20% compared with last year, according to an estimate from travel booking site Kayak as well as data from major airlines. And gas prices nationally averaged $4.55 a gallon as of the Friday heading into the weekend, up $1.38 from last year and up 53% since the start of the Iran war.

The fact that travel isn’t letting up despite the higher costs isn’t a surprise, said Adam Sacks, president of Tourism Economics, an Oxford Economics consulting company.

“Survey data is indicating there’s a lot of concern about gas prices,” he told CNN. “But there’s a disconnect between how people feel and how they act.”

Historically, gas spikes, like in 2022, haven’t dropped leisure or business travel without other factors also weighing in. That’s partly because the people who struggle the most with higher gas prices or airfares weren’t traveling much to begin with.

“More than half of leisure hotel spending is by people making $150,000 or more,” Sacks said.

But some hotel bookings appear to be softening. Laura Lee Blake told CNN more travelers could be skipping the hotel portion of their stay. Blake is CEO of the Asian American Hotel Owners Association, whose 20,000 members, mostly of South Asian descent, own about 60% of US hotels.

“Travelers maybe skip an overnight stay to save money,” she said. “Maybe they visit family members along the way, or they stay with friends instead of booking a hotel.”

Frantz Simon and his family planned to do just that this weekend.

At a Jersey Turnpike rest stop on Thursday, Frantz, his wife, Mildred, and their two children were packed into a rented SUV to make a 12-hour drive from Long Island to Georgia for his grandson’s high school graduation. He said he wouldn’t consider missing the event: “It’s a family outing,” he said.

But to save money, they’re driving straight through in one day and staying with family in Georgia.

In June Lake, California, near the entrance of Yosemite National Park, Connie Lear manages rental reservations for 42 units, mostly condos and private homes. She said many of her regular renters are cutting back, even if they’re still coming.

“Instead of doing seven days, they’re doing five or four,” she said.

And some people are finding ways to travel without spending more. John Mercagliano, who lives in a Philadelphia suburb, nixed plans to vacation in London with friends next week because of the cost. Instead, he is using his miles on American Airlines to fly to Arizona to vacation with the same friends, who live there.

“I considered it (not traveling at all), but I wanted to see them, and I didn’t want to do nothing at all,” he said.

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