Sport — both playing and supporting — can be a wonderful family activity. You can bond over teams, talk about the players and rules, and celebrate great moments.
But sadly, the sporting field isn’t free of homophobic behaviour and, if it’s something your kids witness or hear about that, it’s important to talk to them about it too.
The recent suspension of a young St Kilda player who used homophobic language on the field in a VFL game, is one example.
He’s the third AFL player to be suspended over the issue this year.
Sporting clubs need to be safe spaces
Ryan Storr, a research fellow at Swinburne University in the Sport Innovation Research group and co-founder of not-for-profit organisation Proud 2 Play says sporting clubs needs to be safe spaces for LGBTQIA+ players.
He points to the high rates of depression and mental illness experienced by LGBTQIA+ Australians.
“Even if it’s just one incident it can have a significant impact on an LGBT person,” he says.
“It can stop them from playing completely. It can make them very reserved, and very kind of tentative about sharing information.”
Ruth Jeanes, a professor of sport and social inclusion at Monash University, says high-profile instances of discrimination and prejudice can be an opportunity “to talk to kids about what’s happening [on the field], and what they’re hearing”.
How and when to talk to kids about discriminatory language
Many young Australians play sport, with a 2022–23 snapshot showing than 50 per cent of kids under 14, and 78 per cent of young adults (aged 15–19) participated in weekly sport or a physical activity.
Professor Jeanes says it’s important to have regular discussions that allow kids to talk about and reflect on discrimination.
It takes a “proactive step” to initiate these conversations.
“As parents or coaches on the sideline, we might not be hearing things that are being said within games.”
Professor Jeanes says some ways into a conversation might include:
- Talking to kids about what they’re hearing on the field and while involved with sport.
- If they use or share examples of homophobic language, asking kids why they’re using a word or phrase and where it’s come from.
- Asking if kids understand the context of a word they’ve heard or are using, and explaining it.
- Making sure the “link between [a word or phrase] being highly offensive and discriminatory” is understood.
“The home is always going to be the strongest influence for young kids,” says Professor Jeanes when it comes to tackling homophobia.
For those who may be exposed to discriminatory language at home, sporting clubs and schools can play a part in challenging that and exposing children to alternative perspectives.
“There’s an opening through the sports setting to have different experiences, connect with different types of people and hear different views,” she says.
Dr Storr says addressing any instances of discrimination is critical, even if there are reservations about whether kids are “too young” to learn about it.
“If they’re young enough to use homophobic language, they are absolutely young enough — or old enough — to understand the impact,” he says.
Teaching respect and inclusivity
Dr Storr says conversations with kids about respect can help reduce harm.
“From a young age, we need to educate young people around why they should treat other young people with respect,” he says.
Reflecting on his own experience as a teen, he says, “People within my sporting environment saying that being gay was OK … would have been really, really impactful.”
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