Southend Town LFC supported LGBT History Month in February by sporting rainbow laces and ‘Football v Homophobia’ T-Shirts at training and before matches, promoting their ‘open door’ policy with regards recruitment where they offer a footballing experience
LGBT stands for ‘lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender’ and the annual History Month challenges homophobia, biphobia and transphobia. The team, which includes the Essex County FA’s Inclusion Advisory Group Chair, Kirsty Clarke, sported the shirts before their recent game against Hullbridge Sports in Canvey Island in the Essex County Women’s League Division One. “I think it’s important to practice what you preach”, Kirsty explained.
“As a gay woman I have had very positive experiences within football and, while it’s crucial that we look to eradicate homophobia, it is also a great time to celebrate some of the more positive role models within the female game. For me, women’s football has always been an important community of acceptance. Although there is still work to do within male football, I like to think that lessons can be learnt from the women’s game.”
Football v Homophobia is an international initiative opposing homophobia in football at all levels – from grassroots to professional clubs. It makes a clear stand so that everyone can enjoy the beautiful game and so football leads the way in removing discrimination and prejudice based on gender identity and sexual orientation.
Rainbow Laces is another campaign aiming to kick homophobia out of football. In 2014, players from over 70 professional clubs, including Arsenal and Manchester City, laced-up to show their support for gay players. 30% of the UK adult population heard about the campaign and millions saw Arsenal stars Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain star in “The Changing Room”, a video to show their support for tackling homophobia in football.
Find out more about the Football v Homophobia campaign at www.footballvhomophobia.com. Details on grassroots football inclusion projects can also be found at www.essexfa.com.
SHE KICKS – the online community for women’s football
