Little Changes if Privileged SkatersWon’t Do the Work
Roller Derby Can’t Let Apathy Reign
“I’m not really engaged with roller derby right now”
In the face of a global pandemic, which brought our sport – and all other sports – to an abrupt halt in March this year, it would seem fair enough to be disengaged with an activity that is no longer happening. WFTDA Champs is cancelled, and with it, the 2020 goal for a number of elite WFTDA teams. All other games and tournaments – WFTDA or otherwise – are cancelled, taking with them the long and short term goals and plans of thousands of skaters and officials all over the globe. Training is cancelled. Team Zoom calls have dwindled. Online footage viewing seems futile, or just makes us sad in the absence of a competitive season. In the face of a global pandemic, with no timeline to training in sight for many teams around the globe, it would seem perfectly reasonable to “not be engaged with roller derby right now.” No pressure, stay safe, do what’s best for you.
However, in the face of a huge momentum shift in the Black Lives Matter movement; in the face of the harm that we know is caused to POC skaters in our sport; in the face of the overwhelming whiteness of our sport, which the majority of white skaters have been ignoring, tolerating and perpetuating since the evolution of our sport began… is it really OK to remain in that state of disengagement right now? Or does the roller derby community have a responsibility, both individually and collectively, to come out of hibernation and start to have those difficult conversations, decolonise and restructure our sport, at the ground level?
This is not to downplay the harsh effects of Covid-19 on our hearts and minds and bank accounts. You’d be hard-pressed to find a single skater, official or volunteer unaffected by the huge shifts in our lives. It’s tough. At times, it’s all-consuming. For many of us though, particularly white skaters in North America, Europe and Australia, the option to not be engaged with roller derby right now – the option to turn your back on the conversations that are happening around racial equity and what ‘a safe space’ really, truly means on the roller derby track – is an active choice. It’s a privilege.
The WFTDA has begun a program of work to address anti-racism and systemic change within flat track roller derby, starting with its own organisational structures and policies. In its latest update on this work, dated 7.13.2020, it included an update to WFTDA’s Code of Conduct, effective immediately.
“All Member Leagues are expected to make the commitment to call out discrimination when it appears in our communities. We expect that all Member Leagues will continually work to decolonize their organizations, act with integrity and fight racism, transmisogyny, sexism, transphobia and ableism, and develop a firm understanding of intersectionality and the many ways in which racism contributes to further marginalization of all our communities.
Additionally, the WFTDA will not tolerate complicity in upholding racist systems through refusal to act. This, and any refusal to act on behalf of those who have been discriminated against can result in disciplinary action, up to and including permanent expulsion from the WFTDA.”
The subtext here may not be explicit, but it is clear: the work being done on an organisational level should form an example to lead, but it will not trickle down and transform your league culture by osmosis. Cultural and/or structural change of this fundamental importance is not a project that can be undertaken by a small number of skaters in your league, within a fixed timescale. Change will not occur in your community just because you attended a protest march. It requires dialogue. It requires passion. It requires vulnerability and discomfort. It requires you to care. It requires you to engage.
No one will expect you to show up to a Zoom call with all the answers. It’s fine not to know the answers. Change will be a collaborative effort. What’s not fine, though, is to fail to acknowledge any shortcomings your league may have in the first place, or to leave the work to someone else. Every time this is passed off, it pushes the discussion further from the table. If your silence is borne of a lack of knowing how to tackle the problem, I can almost guarantee it will be interpreted as apathy by anyone trying to start the conversation. And if your silence is borne of you simply waiting until you can strap your skates on and get back to a safe (for you) training space that someone else has organised for you, then that silence is deafening.
If no one in your league knows where to start, or what to address first, examine your league values, if you have any. Do they need to be formed, or updated? Do you have a Diversity & Inclusion committee? Does your code of conduct reflect that of WFTDA, on a league level? Are there behavioural tropes or examples of ignorance or harm in your league culture that require eradicating through education or discipline? Are you connected to your communities? Are there other leagues around you doing great work that you can reach out to for advice (without putting the onus on marginalised communities to do the work for you)? Are you a sponsored or established skater with a network of people that look up to you, with a platform you can use to promote the importance of change? If there is work being done in your league, are you supporting it? Are you contributing? Are you unable to contribute right now but at least willing to demonstrate that you care? Or are you happy for your disengagement and silence to simply uphold the status quo?
Resources
WFTDA’s Latest Anti-Racism Update
https://resources.wftda.org/7-13-20-wftda-anti-racism-update/?fbclid=IwAR1WecEgPw7t6jw8gOGBdOS5V3RlANgH6a5ef6vbiPOEsUE8fHe2hXoni6A
Atlanta Roller Derby’s Open Letter to WFTDA and Its Membership
https://www.atlantarollerderby.com/an-open-letter-to-wftda-leadership-and-membership-from-ard/
Invisible Knapsack Collective’s Discussion on Racism in Roller Derby
