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LGBTQ+ history is still being made... and we're making it!

Writer's picture: Andi PageAndi Page

For LGBTQ+ History month, Mersey Rose's hardball captain Andi Page takes a look towards the future.



February is LGBT History Month.


For those who don't know, LGBT History Month was created in 1994 by Rodney Wilson, a US-based history teacher. Mr Wilson had multiple aims in establishing LGBT History Month, including celebrating LGBTQ+ achievements, underlining the history of the struggle for equality and acceptance, combating prejudice, building the LGBTQ+ community, showcasing LGBTQ+ role models, and making a statement about the contributions of LGBTQ+ people to wider society.


31 years later and it is difficult to say that LGBT History Month hasn't been successful. The initiative has helped bring LGBTQ+ history, and wider issues of LGBTQ+ identity and equality, into the public consciousness. It has helped improve LGBTQ+ visibility and has played a significant role in tackling historic stigma and prejudices.


It is usual to look backwards for LGBT History month, and two years ago I did just that when I wrote this piece: Looking back... to look forwards. History is of greatest value when it provides lessons for our present. Historic LGBTQ+ participation in cricket is rather limited (to say the least) but it doesn't have to be like that and there are reasons to be positive that the culture is gradually changing. Issues around Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) are becoming central to conversations around the future of the game, and something clubs are recognising the need to engage with - even if belatedly and somewhat reluctantly.


The theme of this year's LGBT History Month is Activism and Social Change. For those of us at Mersey Rose, that is a theme we closely identify with. Our club was founded with the express purpose of facilitating social change, and that simply doesn't happen without activism. Whether we think of ourselves as activists or not, as pioneers with aims to change the culture within the game and provide new opportunities for our local communities, that is exactly what we are.


The Collins English Dictionary defines an activist as "an especially active, vigorous advocate of a cause". We are certainly proud to be "especially active" in advocating new approaches to playing the great game of cricket that are inclusive, welcoming and affirming. We identify ourselves with our cause, as articulated within our mission statement. We are proud to challenge the cultural status quo. We stand in opposition to some of the more "traditional" modi operandi of cricket clubs. We want to drive EDI forwards, and in such a way that encourages other clubs to do the same.


That sounds like we are a group of activists and, according to the quoted definition, it's hard to deny it. But most of us are reluctant activists, at least in the sense that our activism is largely expressed through playing cricket. The vast majority of our members have joined our club because they they like our values, because they like our approach to the game or because there aren't opportunities for them to enjoy the game at most other cricket clubs. They're not the usual kind of "activists" and definitely not the kinds who would normally go about making statements, but in playing for Mersey Rose are doing exactly that. Who would have thought that picking up a cricket bat could be such a subversive act?


The term "activist" has developed some negative connotations, mainly because of examples of bad activism, which is regrettable. It really needs to be reclaimed, because without activism nothing changes. There has never been any significant progress in terms of human rights or social equality that has been achieved without people standing up and demanding change. Whether we're talking about women's votes, racial equality, disability inclusion or greater LGBTQ+ acceptance, legislative milestones haven't been achieved in a vacuum. They may have found an outworking through political processes, but fundamentally they were achieved by those who were prepared to fight for them.


The fact is that LGBTQ+ history is still being made. For me, LGBT History Month is a reason to look optimistically to the future rather than focus on the past. Simply by establishing an LGBTQ+ inclusive cricket club, all of us at Mersey Rose have made history and we are continuing to make history by being our authentic selves within the game. We will go on making history as we advocate for change, champion imaginative approaches to inclusivity, oppose anti-LGBTQ+ prejudice and unashamedly stand with the LGBTQ+ community.


In a few years' time, future cricketers and sports historians may look lack at our own club - and the likes of Graces, Birmingham Unicorns, Leeds Kites and Out4 Cricket - as a catalyst for social change. I certainly hope our impact on the game, especially in terms of changing attitudes, will be significant. But it won't happen unless we make it happen, and none of our clubs would exist were it not for activists.


This LGBT History Month, Mersey Rose will be visiting three hospitals in the Liverpool area to engage with staff and visitors. No doubt we will talk about our project and hopefully recruit a few new members in the process, but perhaps the most significant thing is that we have been invited (along with some other organisations) to do this by the staff LGBTQ+ network. This shows that we are recognised as a club that actively supports their community. We are seen as advocates for inclusion and as a club that is making positive contributions for equality.


If there is a message I have for LGBT History month it is this: become an activist! History is always being made, and if we are to seize the opportunities offered to us then we need people who are prepared to be "active, vigorous advocates".


Do you feel you are powerless to make change? History teaches us otherwise. You don't have to do everything at once - pick a clear goal and be ambitious and clear about how to achieve it. Find other people who share your aims. Get your message out - talk to friends and colleagues or use social media. Perhaps you could join some community organisations?


Are you a player at another cricket club? Think about how you can make changes at your own club. What steps could you help your club make towards becoming more inclusive and welcoming? Could you encourage others to follow your lead?


Do you agree that sport could, and should, become more inclusive but don't see where you fit in? Perhaps you support LGBTQ+ inclusion but don't know where to start? Talk to us! Perhaps you don't see yourself as a typical activist, but you have time to volunteer at club like ours, or maybe would even like to play for an inclusive sports club? Just by being involved you can make a huge difference.


Maybe you could come to the Out4Cricket conference in May and take some ideas back to your own club? Or perhaps you have ideas of your own you could take there so that other clubs and organisations can put them into practice?


Activists are not all radical. They are not all preachy. They are not all politically-driven. They simply have a cause that matters. Say you want to see more women playing cricket and you go to your local club and argue to create a women's section - you're an activist. Do you have ideas about how your sports club can be more inclusive of ethnic minorities? Great, you're an activist too! Perhaps you've told your club chairman that you'd like them to support Pride this year, or maybe you've put forward an idea for your sports club to help people from poorer backgrounds to play? Well done, you're another activist!


Today's projects are tomorrow's history. History never stays still. We have the power to make change and, whether big or small, it will be the kind of change that lasts.


Whoever you are, it's time to make history.


Activists are people who want to make change. They are people who want to spread the word. They're people who do what they can to be the change they want to see. They're people who build communities. They're people with a sense of fairness. They're people who challenge outdated norms. They're people who are forward-looking and want to make a better future.


Perhaps as important is what activists are not. They are not people who accept the status quo. They never accept "this is the way it's always been" as an excuse. And they don't wait for the likes of the ECB or their county cricket board to tell them what to do - they get on with it and lead by example. Neither are they people who live in the past: they imagine a better future and do what they can to achieve it. For some of us, like Lachlan and Leo at Out4Cricket, it might mean creating a national campaign; for others, like Martin, Steve or Amy at Mersey Rose, it may just be helping to create a sense of belonging by being fantastic, welcoming people and playing some cricket.


I am confident that systemic change is coming, for two reasons. The first is that, without it, the sport will die. The second is that I believe there are sufficient people with the vision and drive to make it happen.


At Mersey Rose we're proud of what we've already achieved and we aim to keep on making LGBTQ+ history. We hope that others will join us.

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