Everyone can play

SUPPORTING SPORTS CLUBS TO CREATE SAFE ENVIRONMENTS FOR LGBTIQ+ FOLKS

IT WOULD HAVE BEEN NO SURPRISE TO SOME THAT MOANA HOPE, STAR OF AFL WOMEN’S FOR THE FIRST THREE SEASONS, APPEARED ON THE FRONT PAGE OF THE HERALD SUN OPENING UP ABOUT THE HOMOPHOBIC ABUSE SHE HAS EXPERIENCED BOTH AS A FOOTY PLAYER AND A FAN.

Almost any LGBTIQ+ person who has played sport, whether it be at school, for a local club, or at an elite level, at best will have questioned whether it would be an ok place to come out, and at worst been exposed to some of the most hateful and hurtful language and abuse, if not physical abuse as well.

The Out on the Fields study in 2015 was the first international study on the experiences of lesbian, gay and bisexual people in sport. Australian data found that 80% of respondents had experienced or witnessed homophobia in sport; 70% of youth believed that youth team sport is not safe for gay people and 87% of gay men and 75% of gay women were not completely out in team sports. Participation for transgender folks can have even more complexity and challenges as a result of the very binary nature of sporting competitions.

All these factors can result in withdrawal from sports participation, especially team sports, leading to reduced physical activity and poorer health and social outcomes associated with inactivity and isolation.

While many sports clubs wish to be inclusive, they often struggle to know how.

To address this, Working It Out, Tasmania’s gender, sexuality and intersex status support and education service, have been awarded funding by the Tasmanian Government’s Healthy Tasmania Fund to deliver our latest project, Everyone Can Play. Our application was supported by Football Federation Tasmania, AFL Tasmania, Netball Tasmania and Tennis Australia – Tasmania. The project aims to train and support volunteer LGBTIQ+ Inclusion Officers to work within individual clubs. These officers will help the clubs develop and embed LGBTIQ+ inclusive policies and procedures. The LGBTI Inclusion Officer can also provide direct support to LGBTIQ+ club members and address any issues which may impact their participation.

To ensure we are meeting the needs and concerns of the community and sports clubs, we will first conduct a community consultation. The next step will be to roll out the LGBTIQ+ Inclusion Officer training across the state.

If you are keen to have your say during the consultation, or would like to see your club introduce an Inclusion Officer, or indeed attend the training yourself, please contact Liv at Working It Out on 6231 1200 or liv@ workingitout.org.au