The Proud Valiants, the Charlton Athletic Community Trust, Charlton Athletic Football Club & the rest of the CAFC family support Football v Transphobia Week of Action.
Not long off the back of the Football v Homophobia Month of Action, which launched at the Valley at the end of January, a week of specific action for trans inclusion & against transphobia in football takes place.
Between the 24th- 31st March, leading into Trans Day of Visibility, clubs & organisations across the footballing world will show their support for trans & non binary people in the game.
This years theme is #TransFootyAlly, with the people behind FvT asking people to get involved and say why they are allies to trans & non binary people in football. For more information, follow this link: https://www.footballvhomophobia.com/fvt/
Galop’s Transphobia Hate Crime Report 2020 (https://www.galop.org.uk/transphobic-hate-crime-report-2020/), found that 7 in 10 trans people in the UK said their daily routine had been affected by transphobia, with more than 5 in 10 feeling less able to leave the house. 4 in 5 having experienced a form of transphobic hate crime, 1 in 4 having experienced transphobia fuelled physical assault or threats of physical assault, and nearly 1 in 5 having experienced sexual assault or the threat of sexual assault.
These numbers, along with a Stonewall survey finding that almost half (46 per cent) of trans people in the UK have thought about taking their own life, the prominence of transphobia in society is clear to see. And this week, we got a reminder of just how prominent it is in the footballing world too.
On Wednesday evening, rumours started circulating that the real reason behind a Premier League players absence was their desire to transition. While this speculation would appear to have absolutely no grounding in truth, the reaction on social media showed a very ugly side to the beautiful game.
Trans peoples’ place in the game was reduced to ridicule & mockery, and this really highlighted the need for campaigns such as Football v Transphobia to exist, and the need for clubs & organisations to support these campaigns.
The #TransFootyAlly campaign in particular is important to show trans people that there is a safe space for them in football, that there are people who’ll support them and to drown out some of the negative rhetoric.
“Everyone should feel welcome at the beautiful game. We’re all human, after all, and it’s terrible one person’s prejudice can be another’s fear and sense of intimidation.
So we’re proud to be Trans Allies at Charlton Athletic, and to play our part in ensuring trans people feel at home on the terraces, among friends and sharing the passion we all feel for the drama pitchside.”
Dr Roger Hutton & Keir Gale, Proud Valiants Ally Representatives.
Proud Valiants are proud to play the role of allowing our trans & non binary friends a safe space at the Valley, down the pub on a matchday, on the train to an away day and within the Charlton Athletic community as a whole.
Our WhatsApp groupchat filled with match day commentary, transfer speculation & general chat allows for varying levels of anonymity for anyone who wishes to take part in the conversations, as do our pre-match Zoom socials; If anyone wishes to just sit in the chat on mute with their camera off, they are more than welcome to do so.
The group is always open to new members, whether you consider yourself to be LGBTQI+ or an ally, sign up to our mailing list: https://us11.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=591d86c4ee3fbab7743f36156&id=244a98b974
You can also contact us on social media; @CAFC_PV on Twitter, proudvaliants on Instagram or Proud Valiants on Facebook.
The Charlton Athletic Community Trust also offers a safe space to play for trans folk, with our LGBTQI+ inclusive football club Charlton Invicta, as supported by the trust & the club.
“At Charlton Athletic we take great pride in our approach to promoting equality, diversity and inclusion, where everyone deserves to be treated with digniity and respect.
Being a Trans Ally is about listening and learning, and committing to being open-minded and respectful to people who may have a different identity or present in a different way.
In partnership with our great LGBTQI+ Supporters Group, the Proud Valiants, and our LGBTQI+ Football Team, Charlton Invicta, we have recently delivered a Training Seminar looking at Transgender Inclusion. We are committed to taking this time to learning more about trans people, and to challenge assumptions and stereotypes around Trans people.
At Charlton we proudly promote a culture of inclusion, and believe football should be a safe place for everyone.”
Dr Michael Seeraj (Head of EDI at CAFC), Marilyn Toft (CACT Chair) & Jason Morgan MBE (CACT CEO), Charlton Athletic Football Club and the Charlton Athletic Community Trust.
The CAFC family have already been involved in this years Football v Transphobia Week of Action, with two Addicks taking part in the FvH Youth Panel’s “Talking Trans: Being a #TransFootyAlly”.
Proud Valiants committee member Sam Clarke playing a hosting role as a trans ally, while Samuel Bailey of Charlton Invicta was a panellist at the event, talking with the fellow panellists about how you can be a #TransFootyAlly.
Samuel Bailey also joined fellow Charlton Invicta players in Naomi Reid & Julia in guesting on the special FvT takeover of the FvH Podcast, hosted by Football v Transphobia lead Natalie Washington.
During the podcast, Naomi teased content coming out from Charlton Invicta later in the week: “Take a look at Charlton Invicita’s social channels, there is going to be a lot more coming that contributes to Football v Transphobia Week of Action.”
Which was backed up by the host Natalie: “Naomi has given me a heads up to what some of that content is, and I second that, definitely look out for that. There is loads of good stuff coming on there.”
So with that in mind we would like to push you towards the Invicta social channels, @CharltonInvicta on Twitter & CACTInvicta on Instagram.
The CAFC family will no doubt continue to be active this week and beyond, continuing the traditions of the club & community, to fight for equality and against discrimination.