The Birmingham Games started with a message to the majority of Commonwealth countries that still criminalize same-sex relations
When British diver Tom Daley entered Birmingham’s Alexander Stadium during the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Games, he made a powerful statement.
The Olympic champion was the first athlete to carry the Queen’s Scepter, and she was flanked by athletes and activists waving the Pride Progress flag — to raise awareness of the 35 Commonwealth member states that criminalize same-sex relations.
It is part of a broader campaign to spark Commonwealth-wide reforms.
“There are more countries in the Commonwealth that criminalize homosexuality than not,” Pride House Birmingham (PHB) co-founder Lou Englefield told ABC Sport.
“So the Commonwealth Games is a unique opportunity for LGBTQI+ activists like myself and my colleagues to highlight these issues, and try to have a discussion about these things.”
Colonial heritage homophobic law
The Pride House has been a fixture at many major sporting events since the first iteration at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics.
The Birmingham edition is designed to be a safe space for all visitors, while providing a program of events and exhibitions.
And for the first time, there are also Pop-up Pride Houses in three athlete villages, where trained volunteers can provide support to competitors.
“LGBT rights through sport, unfortunately, are under attack right now,” said Dr Ryan Storr, of the Swinburne University Sports Innovation Research Group.
“They use sport as a platform to try and advance anti-trans sentiment, gay athletes still have a long way to go, intersex athletes are still barred from running in races.
“The full spectrum of the LGBT community is under attack. It just shows you that this safe space is needed, because we are nowhere near where we need to be.”
Dr Sheree Bekker from the University of Bath added that “feeling safe plays a huge role in” anyone, in this case elite athletes, being able to perform at their best on the world stage.
“I think athletes are often trained to separate parts of themselves and just be these robotic athletes, particularly when it comes to elite competition,” he said.
“But we are now starting to recognize athletes as fully human. And if they can bring their whole selves into that space, their performances will definitely benefit from that.”
One of the exhibits provides an overview of the human rights situation for LGBTQI+ people in 56 Commonwealth member states, including the legality of same-sex sexual activity, marriage laws and whether they have anti-discrimination safeguards.
In some countries, homosexuality is punishable by life imprisonment, or even death.
“A lot of the laws in these countries are colonial heritage, they come from England,” Englefield said.
“This is our place to talk about the legacy of colonialism. Not only in those countries in terms of the economy and racism, but also around LGBTIQ+ inclusion and persecution.”
Dr Storr said the British government should be held accountable for the impact of colonialism.
“I find it quite ironic, in that [government] say you have to change, but they often cause that, and I don’t know if there’s been as much involvement or support in helping to move that forward,” he said.
“I think they can do more to support the LGBT community. And I think sport can have a good role, because it’s a universal language and forces people to have conversations.”
The role of sport in creating change
The Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) has taken steps to promote inclusion across its member states, supporting Pride House Birmingham and creating the Commonwealth Pride Network.
And there are some signs there may be progress — PHB estimates there were around 10 athletes out on the 2018 Gold Coast and says there are now around 40 in Birmingham.
But CGF chief executive Katie Sadleir admits there are limits to what the organization can do.
“We are not a government agency, we are an international sports federation,” he said.
“We can’t go in to change the rules in countries, but what we can do is create opportunities for people to discuss issues in a safe environment.
“Our values of humanity, equality and destiny are very important to us, and we pride ourselves on being the game we think is probably the most inclusive in terms of the type of programming you’ll see.”
Englefield says while sport has the capacity to drive change, there are other ways to help.
“What we need to do is look at the great people in the countries who are doing the work, who know their community, know their community better than anyone else, and know how to benefit and maybe be supported by activists from other areas to benefit from it,” he said.
Australia can lead the way for inclusion
While Australia may be one of the most progressive Commonwealth countries when it comes to LGBTQI+ rights, Dr Storr said there was more room for improvement.
“[Australian sports] have started their journey towards LGBT inclusion, where previously they hadn’t done any type of engagement and were stuck in the sand about it,” he said.
“But the problem is they have started the journey and some of them think that it stops there.”
He said it was important to have positive conversations around this issue.
“Because unfortunately, sometimes, in certain sections of the media, even in Australia, unless it’s a very controversial thing, which is to the detriment of LGBT people, people are not going to write about it,” he said.
“But one thing I will say about returning to the UK, compared to Australia, Australia is a little bit further than I thought compared to other countries.
“And I think eventually, in the next few years, towards [2023 FIFA] Women’s World Cup and [2026] Commonwealth Games [in Victoria]that [Brisbane 2032] The Olympics, I think they’ll really be able to lead the way around what an LGBT and a fully inclusive environment looks like.”
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