Tuesday 17 January 2012

Somewhere over the rainbow Margaret Court's comments will be band...

Well done Laura Robson.


Without wanting to sound too patronising the teenage tennis player, who is one of a number of talented young Brits looking to break into the top echelons the sport, proved that a little action can go a long way.

In support of equality in sport, the 17-year-old wore a multicoloured hairband during her Australian Open match against Jelena Jankovich.

It comes in the wake of comments from Australian tennis legend Margaret Court, an avid opponent of same-sex relationships and after whom the arena Robson played her match on was named.

Court, 69, reportedly said: "Politically correct education has masterfully escorted homosexuality out from behind closed doors, into the community openly and now is aggressively demanding marriage rights that are not theirs to take.

"The fact that the homosexual cry is, `We can't help it, as we were born this way,' as the cause behind their own personal choice is cause for concern."

The comments made last week sparked outrage and led to a mass campaign quite simply called 'Rainbow Flags over Margaret Court Arena'.

When Robson was asked about the band after her match, the teenager said: "It was just a rainbow-coloured hairband. I didn't see anything about a protest today."

The Brit added: "I wore it because I believe in equal rights for everyone. That's it. It wasn't a protest, it was just a hairband."

Now in the age of PR and 24/7 media it can be seen that Robson wanted to make a statement but not overplay her opposition to Court's out-dated and vile views.

But what it does do is show all supporters that a little bit of activism can go a long way.

For the Justin Campaign it is encouraging to see so many players - others have been more vocal than Robson - oppose the inhumane views that Court spouts not only to her congregation but also to the media.

We can only hope that pressure is kept up on the authorities to stop Court from attending this year's event but also reconsider naming the arena.

For those players that have to walk onto it during a grand slam it is supposed to be an honour, not a memory of outdated views and abhorred statements.

Perhaps if similar uproar came in football, players could wear messages of support under their shirts?

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