Big Read: In the wake of George Floyd's death, the hockey world has begun to face its own failings around racism in the game. But for real change to come, the voices of Black women — long ignored and silenced — must be centred. By: SachdevaSonny
In terms of their wider social impact, these one-on-one conversations are limited, but there has been one exception: an earnest and wide-ranging discussion between Bolden and her former Boston College teammate, Allie Thunstrum, which was hashed out in the public eye courtesy of Ayala’s series., a misguided comment on the damage done by the protests consuming her home state — the one in which she also plays as a member of the NWHL’s Minnesota Whitecaps — soon followed by a wave of backlash.
For Bolden, that educational labour is simply part of the deal, the price of being tabbed a trailblazer. “I mean, it’s what I’m here for,” she says. “If I am this figure in our sport, I need to have a voice, and I need to share my story, because that’s what I’ve told hundreds of people that have listened to me — sharing stories is what’s important. Everybody has an individual story to give.”
“I definitely applaud her for recognizing her mistake and ultimately, after being called out for it, calling herself out for it,” says Nurse. “I think that’s a huge step in the growth and understanding and learning, because people are going to make mistakes. I’m going to make mistakes. I’m not always going to say the right thing. But it’s when that problem, or that mistake, is identified, how you react to it … That’s what it’s all about.
The sport’s path forward shouldn’t rely only on the hope that players will be able to come to their own conclusions about how to act, though. It’s the responsibility, too, of the teams and leagues they play for to support that effort; to educate white players on racial equality. Few have a better grasp of the current state of that support than Knight, who, over the course of her career, has suited up for the NCAA, CWHL, NWHL, PWHPA and for Team USA.
Koelzer, who’s set to soon make the jump to the coaching ranks, having been hired to run the newly established women’s hockey program at Arcadia University, stresses the coach’s crucial role in building an anti-racist environment, too. It’s about more than simply spurring dialogue, she says. It also comes down to communicating how exactly that dialogue needs to take place.
But that’s only a fraction of the overall need for an altered vision of the game. “From the ice, from the players, up to the board rooms and the corporate executives, we need to see representation,” adds Nurse. “We need to see more than just white men around our game. … We need to make that commitment to each other, saying ‘Diversity is important, and we’re going to show you that diversity’s important. We’re going to put people in charge that have a diverse background.
“It’s extremely important to recognize the feminist dimension of these new movements,” Davis pointed out during that early-June UCHRI panel, “and to think about a kind of genealogy that goes back to the emergence of Black Lives Matter, and new feminist notions of leadership that are collective.” The leaders that are right here, calling for change and ready to guide the process, illustrate Ayala’s point. Because they approach this need for progress with perspectives shaped by so much more than having laced up a pair of skates.
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