Queer Hockey Players Share Sport Experience
It’s no secret that sport environments can make the 2SLGBTQIA+ community feel unwelcome. In order to make sport more inclusive; coaches, teammates, and organizations must educate themselves about how to be better allies. We reached out to athletes with firsthand experience and an advocacy expert to share their wisdom.
Carly Jackson (she/her) :
Amherst native, Carly Jackson is a professional hockey player with the Toronto Six and an avid baseball player. As a female athlete that identifies as gay, Carly feels that her sport has given her a place to be herself.
“The ice and the field have always been a safe place for me to express my personality through competing and spending time with my teammates. I feel most like myself while I’m playing sports with my friends and that has given me the confidence to present my most authentic self outside of athletics.”
Carly is grateful for her platform as a professional athlete. “Playing hockey is one of my favourite things in the whole world so to be able to compete and celebrate a part of who I am is a very special thing to me,” she says. “Having a platform to create a space like that for others is something I feel very passionate about, because of the joy that it has brought me.”
Her advice for creating a safe environment 2SLGBTQIA+ is to recognize and support your athletes and teammates.
“Acknowledge and celebrate what makes people who they are. Values like integrity, love, kindness, and work ethic. Celebrating parts of who we are opens the stage for people to be comfortable in their own skin and supported by those around them,” says Carly.
Carly encourages other athletes in the 2SLGBTQIA+ community to celebrate themselves.
“Being your most authentic self is the most powerful thing. All of the lessons and skills you’ve developed as an athlete, use those skills to support who you are and go shine however you choose,” said Carly.
Jaylen McKellar (he/they):
Jaylen McKellar is the founder of Queer Hockey Nova Scotia, an inclusive hockey team created to provide a safe space for 2SLGBTQIA+ athletes. As a trans-athlete, Jaylen says he and many other 2SLGBTQIA+ athletes feel pushed out from mainstream teams and leagues.
The uneasy feeling Jayden had endured on the ice vanished when he joined an all-trans hockey team in Wisconsin, showing them how it feels to be comfortable in a jersey.
“After that experience, I wanted to bring that wholeness and safe space to Halifax. I plan on growing Queer Hockey Nova Scotia to provide a safe space for these athletes,” says Jaylen. “The most freeing feeling is being welcomed into a space that is so accepting and being around people that can relate.”
Jaylen wants the 2SLGBTQIA+ community to know that Queer Hockey Nova Scotia is a place to be yourself and form connections while staying active.
Their advice for 2SLGBTQIA+ athletes is, “take up space, be proud of who you are. Do not let others push you out. Do not dim your light.”
This trailblazing hockey player offers guidance to sport organizations, teammates, and coaches,
“Ask athletes their comfort level on things. It is not a one size fits all,” says Jaylen.
“It takes courage to speak up, so chances are it has been happening for a while. Allies make space for queer athletes. When you see queer athletes stop participating reach out to them, find out why they are no longer playing and if it’s something to investigate or improve processes.”
David Lewis (he/him):
David Lewis is a team member of Queer Hockey Nova Scotia and says the fear of being a victim to homophobic slurs made his past sport experience an isolating one.
“I never felt connected to other athletes, I was ashamed to express my identity because of the potential repercussions. Due to the nature of the conversations within the locker rooms and offside comments about queer people, I only went to play the sport and head home,” said David.
While living in Toronto, he joined a queer hockey league that introduced him to a side of hockey culture that allowed him to be himself. When David moved back to the east coast, he found a safe space playing hockey with Queer Hockey Nova Scotia.
David says the first step to making sport a more welcoming place for 2SLGBTQIA+ athletes is getting to know your athletes and teammates.
“Use the athlete’s proper pronouns and name, the language used is an important aspect of creating an inclusive environment,” says David. “If there are people making homophobic, transphobic, sexist, or other inappropriate comments, these should be addressed.”
Grateful that he didn’t give up sport, David encourages 2SLGBTQIA+ athletes to stay in the game.
“Do not shy away from the sport you love. There are or will be places where you will feel welcome to be who you are and play the sport you love.”
The Youth Project- Carmel Farahbakhsh (they/them):
The Youth Project provides support and services to youth around issues of sexual orientation and gender identity. The Youth Projects Executive Director and Support and Advocacy Coordinator, Carmel Farahbakhsh says it is imperative that 2SLGBTQIA+ youth feel actively welcomed into sport.
They share actions that organizations, coaches, and teammates can take to make sport a welcome space for all athletes.
“There are so many ways that this support can manifest such as providing gender-neutral changing spaces and washrooms (or advocating for their creation), and establishing a zero-tolerance discrimination space as a leader so that attendees feel supported and safer,” says Carmel.
“Introducing yourself with your pronouns and normalizing the practice of sharing and asking pronouns without making assumptions, working to decrease sex-segregated sports spaces.”
The key to great allyship starts with education.
“Grow your understanding around how gender-affirming items can impact a young person’s physical capacity, create modifications around movement so that the space is more accessible to all and does not assume mobility, as well as keep up to date with affirming language and terminology,” says Carmel.
“These actions can completely change and transform a space and can allow for so many more to participate, 2SLGBTQIA+ youth deserve to play too.”
It is imperative that organizations make changes that promote inclusivity. Coaches and athletes must embrace the differences of their team members. When we embrace diversity we all win.
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