Declaration Sets Tone

It’s a single sentence, but one that sends a clear message about what’s expected when we get together for sport.

“Here we stand up against racism and discrimination and support fair play for all,” reads the anti-racism declaration that the Recreation Facility Association of Nova Scotia launched in November.

It was one of the many initiatives released as part of Nova Scotia Sport & Recreation Anti-Racism Week to encourage an anti-racist culture in sport. The declaration sets the tone before a game even starts.

“Not everybody feels safe and not everybody feels welcomed,” says Jennie Greencorn, the executive director with RFANS.

“I think it’s important that we change that culture in our facilities so that people do feel welcome and that we don’t tolerate racism and discrimination and that we all have a part to play in that. We really do.”

The Province approached RFANS to participate in the inaugural week, and Greencorn said the association wanted to create something that could be used in Nova Scotia’s huge number of facilities.

The declaration is available as a decal to be displayed and as an audio clip that can be played in facilities with an in-house sound system. The hope is the declaration is used on an ongoing basis.

“We wanted to do something that engages the facilities but also engages the sports organizations or rec organizations, the people who are using our facilities,” Greencorn says.

“You can’t do sport and recreation without facilities, and we should all be working together.”