Latest release Inequalities in Sport
CEO warns there maybe many other BAME victims in sport suffering in silence.
Following the recent events surrounding the complaint made by Eniola Aluko to the FA about discriminatory remarks made to her and the subsequent government select committee that interviewed the leadership team at the FA and their handling of the complaint, the CEO of Sporting Equals, the equality charity for sport, has called for other BAME professionals to come forward if they feel discriminated or harassed against in the sport sector. Kang goes on to state that there must be change in the boardrooms of sport to support those suffering in silence.
Arun Kang, CEO of Sporting Equals, a charity that works to promote ethnic diversity at all levels in sport, said “Until we have empathy in the boardrooms of sport these issues are going to keep recurring. What's worrying is the amount of BAME professionals who aren't as brave as Eniola Aluko, to come forward and raise a grievance. The lack of diversity in sport at Board level (4% BAME) and in coaching (3%) offers little understanding of race and religious discrimination.
Recent audits conducted on the profile of national governing body boards and senior teams show that there is a significant lack of BAME diversity. The latest figures from Sporting Equals suggest that only 26 out of 601 board positions (4 per cent) have BAME members and out of 68 sports organisations only one has a BAME CEO.
Kang continued, “The only way to increase diversity swiftly is to level the playing field and this would need sport to explore positive action measures such as the Rooney rule. Whilst it is pleasing to see the EFL develop a pilot programme with a small number of professional football clubs, I feel that sport generally, and governing bodies of sport in particular, need to take a closer look at their policies and practices when it comes to equality and diversity because if they don't they are not only putting their reputation at risk, but also letting down their personnel, be it players, coaches, or administrators.
Further details about Eniola Alukos story can be found through clicking on the following link.
Recent Articles
Katarina Johnson-Thompson opens applications to the KJT Academy
Katarina Johnson-Thompson, has opened up applications for year one of the KJT...
Jit shares his thoughts on working on the Slough Breaking Boundaries programme in 2020
Jit shares his thoughts on working on the Slough Breaking Boundaries programme...
Physical Activity Levels Disparity Identified Within Young People and Children from Ethnically Diverse Communities
The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted the activity levels of...
We catch up with Lauren Mudd to hear about her first year as the Breaking Boundaries Bradford Community Coordinator
Lauren reflects on her first year as part of the Bradford Breaking Boundaries...
Usman Khan looks back on the 2020 Breaking Boundaries programme through his perspective as the Birmingham Activator
We look back on the 2020 Breaking Boundaries programme with Birmingham...
Sporting Equals Terminology Resource
Sporting Equals launches Terminology Resource to further our recent work on...
CEO Arun Kang OBE Statement: Uniting The Movement Sport England 10-Year Strategy Review
Our CEO Arun Kang OBE, reviews the new Sport England 10-Year strategy: Uniting...
My first year as the Manchester Community Coordinator - James Badrock
Manchester Community Champion, James Badrock was keen to tell us about his...
Reflecting on 2020 Breaking Boundaries in Barking & Dagenham with Samir Sawhney
We sat down with Samir, our Barking & Dagenham Activator to get his take on...
Looking back at 2020 Breaking Boundaries programme in Slough with Billy Cousins
2020 from the perspective of Billy Cousins, Slough Breaking Boundaries...
Reflecting on Bradford Breaking Boundaries programme 2020 with Activator Talish Butt
We looked back at Bradford Breaking Boundaries programme 2020 with our Bradford...
Reflecting on Breaking Boundaries 2020 with Chandni Paul
We sat down with our Birmingham City Coordinator Chandni Paul to reflect on her...