Name: Tilda Sutter
Social Justice Group: Sports and Equality
Date of Fieldwork: December 5, 2018
Name of Organization: Athlete Ally
Person (people) with whom I met and their job titles: Hudson Taylor – Founder of Athlete Ally and Former Professional Wrestler
Type of Fieldwork: Interview
What I did:
On December 5th, we skyped Hudson Taylor to learn more about the treatment of LGBTQ athletes in sports. We talked about his personal impact on this issue. We also talked briefly about gender equality and what he believes are the future steps for equality in sports. He offered perspectives to issues we had never heard before, like his ideas about sports in the future.
What I learned:
I learned so much from Hudson Taylor. I learned about his personal story of becoming an LGBTQ rights activist. When he was a wrestler, he heard many teammates using language detrimental to people who identify as LGBTQ, and as the captain of the team, wanted to do something. He then competed wearing a LGBTQ sticker on his helmet to show his support. He said it was important for him, as the head of the team, to show he supports people who identify as LGBTQ so his teammates would feel comfortable coming out of the closet. He also talked about how sports will evolve to be much more inclusive of disabled and genders. When we invent new sports that people with and without disabilites can play together, and where people of all genders can compete together, that will solve many of the issues we face today.
What I learned about Social Justice “work” and/or Civil and Human rights “work” from this fieldwork:
I learned about the importance of being an ally. Taylor said that sometimes people don’t listen to people that identify as LGBTQ, but when people who identify as straight show their support for people who identify as LGBTQ it shows everyone can do it to. You don’t need to be gay to support people who are. He also talked about the importance of major sports players showing their support for people that identify as LGBTQ. If players that are idolized support LGBTQ rights, the country will follow.
