The recent article on being out in sport [Fighting For Fair Play, 21 Sept] was fascinating. The irony that Louisa Wall was encouraged in her expression of sexuality by being in a rugby team, whereas it’s the opposite for men is really quite something.

I think Blake is absolutely right when he says there needs to be a public relations campaign like John Kirwan’s mental health series. In fact I think John’s campaign is ‘Queer’ (in the academic sense) in that he is challenging masculine stereotypes and the assumptions about what it means to be an All Black (and therefore a ‘real man’ in Aotearoa today). Most of us know the stereotypes are rubbish – why can’t we challenge them head on? Given that negative feelings about ones own and others sexuality lead to mental health issues for many people, might Mental Health Foundation consider funding (or match/joint funding) such a campaign?

I also think Ma’a Nonu is a queer hero with his insistence that he could wear eyeliner if he wanted to (and Ma’a is a great one for showing that men can be ‘soft’, cuddling babies and children at training), and Tana Umaga’s infamous handbag incident (when he belted a fellow team mate with a bag for being unchivalrous to a woman) really suggests to me that there are some brave ‘straight’ rugby players who might be champions for those who don’t hold to the Kiwi Bloke stereotype. In NZ we have such a diversity of maleness depending on cultural backgrounds and individual beliefs as well as sexual identity perspectives, why can’t we see those represented in the ‘mainstream’?

I hope a suitable champion (whether he is gay or straight) can be found to front such a campaign. I think the time is right, and it’s a matter of a) finding the willing person and b) finding funding for the ads! (Maybe Ministry of Education would chip in given that it would help with the homophobic bullying in schools).

Cheers and thanks for another great issue
Emma

[Cartoon by Murray Webb]