As Gaygooners celebrat s tenth anniversary this month, we spoke to founr Stewart Selby about the group's origs
Contents:
- RABOW LAC: GAY GOONERS -CHAIR GRATEFUL FOR CLUB'S YEAR-ROUND SUPPORT AHEAD OF ARSENAL VS NEWSTLE MATCH
- 'WE LOVE FOOTBALL AS MUCH AS ANYONE ELSE' - HOW THE GAY GOONERS AND ARSENAL ARE TACKLG HOMOPHOBIA
- ARSENAL’S GAY GOONERS AMONG ENGLISH LGBT SOCCER FAN GROUPS PHG FOR CLN
- ‘THIS MUNY CHANGED MY LIFE’ ARSEBLOG NEWS TALKS TO GAY GOONERS FOR PRI
RABOW LAC: GAY GOONERS -CHAIR GRATEFUL FOR CLUB'S YEAR-ROUND SUPPORT AHEAD OF ARSENAL VS NEWSTLE MATCH
Members of GayGooners share what Pri month means to them * arsenal gay gooners *
To celebrate, we ved members of GayGooners to share their experienc of Pri month, tellg what means to have been the first football club reprented at a Pri march. I nnot beg to thank the GayGooners and Arsenal enough for the real difference they have ma my life.
When a handful of found the GayGooners 2013, Arsenal was the first Premier League club to have an official LGBT supporters group. When we started, homophobic and transphobic abe was still monplace at grounds and on social media, and sometim we uld feel like we were alone.
In 2022 I will be attendg my first ever Pri London, and I am so proud to be a part of the GayGooners ntgent for this important event. Wh football fandom is often still taboo to be out and a same-sex relatnship, and recent months members of GayGooners have been abed and asslted for a simple thg as wearg rabow lac to a game, or holdg their partner’s hand.
'WE LOVE FOOTBALL AS MUCH AS ANYONE ELSE' - HOW THE GAY GOONERS AND ARSENAL ARE TACKLG HOMOPHOBIA
Arsenals clash wh Newstle on Saturday is first game of Premier Leagu 2021 Rabow Lac activatn; Carl Fearn, -chair of LGBTQ+ fans group Gay Gooners, highlights importance of visibily and challengg those who persist sgg homophobic chants * arsenal gay gooners *
It’s up to fan groups like ours to show the world that ’s ok to be Gay, Trans, Non-Bary, Pansexual, Queer, anywhere on the LGBTQI+ spectm and love the game. The support of the Arsenal fay - om the club, fellow fans and the iends who make up the GayGooners - at Pri n never be unrstated.
ARSENAL’S GAY GOONERS AMONG ENGLISH LGBT SOCCER FAN GROUPS PHG FOR CLN
The Gay Gooners have teamed up wh Arsenal to make the Emirat a more welg place for members of the LGBT+ muny * arsenal gay gooners *
We are makg Arsenal for Everyone, every day - through allyship, through visibily and through thoands of GayGooners beg their thentic selv whether Gay, Lbian, Bi, Trans, Ace or Queer.
‘THIS MUNY CHANGED MY LIFE’ ARSEBLOG NEWS TALKS TO GAY GOONERS FOR PRI
On the tenth anniversary of GayGooners, we joed our LGBTQ+ supporters group at the biggt Pri march the UK * arsenal gay gooners *
Gay Gooners aim to rid football of the surg that are homophobia, biphobia and transphobia (Picture: Metro/Arsenal/Getty)‘I don’t give a toss that you’re LGBT, you’re an Arsenal fan and you hate Spurs! That is the roundg msage om the -chair of Gay Gooners, Arsenal’s official supporters’ group for LGBT+ fans, Carl Fearn, who wants all fans to be treated equally, no matter their sexualy or genr. Gay Gooners is the official Arsenal supporters’ group for LGBT+ fans (Picture: David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Imag)‘I was married for 12 years before I me out, ’ says Fearn.
Gay Gooners, who have garnered over 1, 100 members all seven ntents sce the group’s ceptn 2013, are helpg to create a safer environment for LGBT+ fans. It’s a social group for LGBT+ Arsenal supporters and their iends to provi a safe space which they n meet up, share tickets, anise trips to away gam and mpaign to rid football of the surg that are homophobia, biphobia and transphobia. The Gay Gooners banner was unveiled by club legend Pat Rice MBE (Picture: Getty)What’s so special about the group is how has been embraced by Arsenal.
The north London club display the Gay Gooners banner at the Emirat Stadium and ve members to take part cln trag for staff, while the group reprent the Gunners at the annual London Pri para. Arsenal are vtigatg homophobic abe om fans durg a Premier League clash agast Brighton April, where two supporters were ejected om the Emirat Stadium. In the last week of the 2021/22 mpaign, Gay Gooners noted three cints volvg transphobia and homophobia directed towards members of the group.