Jozi Cats: Ai's first gay gby team | CNN

gay rugby team in south africa

In sports-crazed South Ai, gby equals manls, but now the untry’s first gay gby club is challengg stereotyp. CNN’s David McKenzie reports.

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JOZI CATS: AI’S FIRST GAY GBY TEAM TACKL HOMOPHOBIA

Queen. Fairy. Pansy. Pillow Ber. Ai’s first gay gby team, Jozi Cats, ref the homophobic sults a provotive marketg mpaign. * gay rugby team in south africa *

Gay gby team lnched South Ai. In the macho world of sports, ’s not easy to be openly gay – and sults like the make difficult to e out the locker room. But one fledglg gby team is g such stereotyp to not only create awarens of homophobia, but to promote self as a safe haven for those who don’t feel fortable wh the game’s culture.

AI’S FIRST GAY GBY TEAM: JOZI CATS

We are the Jozi Cats - Ai's first gay and clive petive gby club based Johannburg, South Ai. * gay rugby team in south africa *

Formed this year, Johannburg-based Jozi Cats is Ai’s first gay gby team – and s provotive marketg mpaign has had a greater impact than s members ever dreamed possible. Ai's first gay gby club shatters stereotyp. Homosexualy is outlawed many Ain untri, but that is not the se South Ai.

However, an Amnty Internatnal report poted to at least seven murrs what appeared to be homophobic attacks between June and November 2012.

MEET SOUTH AI'S FIRST OPENLY GAY GBY TEAM

Ai’s first gay gby team is tacklg stereotyp as seeks to rec new members, g a provotive advertisg mpaign which has sparked a bate about homophobia sport. * gay rugby team in south africa *

“We said let’s do somethg that tak gay stereotyp and turns them on their heads, and ask the qutn, like ‘Are you or aren’t you?

“We had to e words – tradnal gay slurs – which didn’t need translatn to the broar straight muny, which people would get whout too much explanatn. So that’s why we went to our six gay stereotyp.

“It’s started a nversatn about homophobia sport, more specifilly homophobia gby, ” says Kuni, who portrayed “Pillow Ber” the photo shoot. There’s also que a big gay gby scene globally that we want to put teams together for, bee South Ai is not reprented there at all. So we looked at them, and he said ‘But they don’t even look gay.

GAY RUGBY BRIDG DIVI SOUTH AI

The group has also started up advertisg mpaigns g some of the hostile, homophobic slurs that are normally directed at gay men South Ai by turng them upsi down and owng them. * gay rugby team in south africa *

“It’s great to have started the nversatn – and that nversatn is, ‘Why do we even need to have a gay gby team? Verrijdt is wary of nmng gby as a homophobic sport, and says tn n create wir awarens. “A lot of homophobic slurs have a certa jocular humor to , so I often thk ’s unnsc and ’s not even meant the way out, ” he says.

“But n be hurtful, absolutely, and that’s why we e the payoff le, ‘Rugby, that’s so gay, ’ bee I’ve been out wh straight iends – as iendly and clive as they are – and even wh them slips out, and you have to tch yourself.

Read: Gay gby ref ‘nsired chemil stratn’. Kuni hop the club – which maly plays touch gby for now – will one day take part ternatnal events such as the Gay Gam, Out Gam and Bgham Cup.

SOUTH AI’S GAY GBY TEAM A MPAIGN TO CLU GAY PEOPLE THE WORLD OF SPORTS

South Ai's Jozi Cats, the first gay gby team ai, is g provotive advertisg mpaign to rec members to s club. * gay rugby team in south africa *

Read: World’s first gay gby club turns 20.

AI'S FIRST GAY GBY TEAM LNCH PROVOTIVE RECMENT MPAIGN

* gay rugby team in south africa *

Found on 20 Augt 2015, Ai’s first gay gby team began their journey wh simple ials of creatg a safe and harassment-ee environment for everyone to enjoy the game of gby. Havas PR, of which Chris is the head, vised a bold mpaign to tackle homophobia gby and turn gay stereotyp si out. It challenged the public by askg, “What do a gay gby player look like?

AI’S FIRST GAY RUGBY TEAM “JOZI CATS” TACKL HOMOPHOBIA

South Ai's first gay gby team is planng a tour to the sport's tradnal heartlands to tackle discrimatn head-on. * gay rugby team in south africa *

” and ed the typil gay slurs one would hear on the sports field. The Rugby, That’s so Gay global mpaign lnched on 4 May 2016 and went viral. Ai’s first gay gby tour menced December 2016 and the Jozi Cats set their sights on shiftg the nservative narrative of gby South Ai.

AI’S FIRST GAY GBY CLUB SHATTERS STEREOTYP

In a bid to fight stereotyp, the Jozi Cats, South Ai's first gay gby team has lnched a mpaign to rec more members to their team * gay rugby team in south africa *

We beme Ai’s first gay and clive petive gby club 2015 where anyone regardls of their sexual orientatn, genr inty or genr exprsn n enjoy the game of gby a safe space whether as a player, official or spectator. Jozi Cats ters for experienced players and adult begners both touch and ntact gby, as well as reprentg South Ai ternatnal gay clive gby as the only club Ai that belongs to the IGR, the global anisatn for gay and clive gby. Our sights are set firmly on growg gay and clive gby wh Jozi Cats Rugby Club and the rt of the untry, while ensurg we rema a safe and harassment-ee environment for everyone who shar the valu.

South Ai's Jozi Cats, the first gay gby team Ai, is g a provotive advertisg mpaign to rec members to s club.

GAY SA GBY TEAM HEADG TO HEARTLANDS

"Lots of ternatnal guys (om other gay clubs) feared hearg formg bee South Ai is one of the superpowers of the gby world.

The team hop to eventually be able to pete ternatnal tournaments such as the Gay Gam, Out Gam and Bgham Cup. "It's started a nversatn about homophobia sport, more specifilly homophobia gby.

"We're nng a mpaign to make awarens of people who are homosexual our society to have urage to actually step out, " says Chris Herbst -- "Flamer" the photo shoot. "The tth of the matter is that many of our players don't feel like they n be openly gay and be a gby player South Ai, " said Jozi Cats chairman Tevhan Kuni. The group has also started up advertisg mpaigns g some of the hostile, homophobic slurs that are normally directed at gay men South Ai by turng them upsi down and owng them.

JOZI CATS: SOUTH AI'S FIRST GAY AND CLIVE GBY CLUB

The Gayly- 5/11/2016 @ 1:45 p. At the time, to me, the ia of gay gby didn’t sound so out of the ordary.

I mean, there were gay sports leagu all over the world, and I didn’t perceive South Ai to be a place that wasn’t tolerant of queers — but apparently I wasn’t totally clued to the homophobia that exists sports South Ai.

They hired a PR firm that staged a bold mpaign that turned gay stereotyp si out by challengg you to ask “what do a gay gby player look like?

WATCH AS SOUTH AI'S FIRST GAY GBY TEAM TACKL PREJUDICE

” and ed the typil gay slurs one would hear on the sports field to tackle homophobia gby. The “Rugby, That’s So Gay” mpaign lnched that May and went viral.

MEET AI'S FIRST GAY CLIVE GBY CLUB

Ai’s first gay gby tour menced December 2016, wh sights firmly set on shiftg the nservative narrative of gby South Ai. They traveled throughout South Ai, creatg awarens that homophobia had no place sport and even hosted gby clics to spire other LGBTQ muni around the untry to start their own safe muny space to enjoy gby. The world of sports is still a place where homophobia ns rampant.

BOLD AD MPAIGN FOR SOUTH AIN GBY CLUB GRABS ATTENTN, TACKL GAY STEREOTYP

Jozi Cats is the first gby team South Ai that clus gay people, and to rec new members, the team has started a mpaign lled What Kd of Player Are You? The mpaign aims to change how people see mascule stereotyp, mostly when to draw attentn, the team ed homophobic slurs alongsi provotive photos. “Our job, ultimately, is to get the word out there that there is a place where you n be gay and a gby player, and be who you are whout fear of discrimatn, ” head of Havas Public Relatns South Ai said.

The group has also created que a marketg mpaign, g some of the slurs and other homophobic terms ed agast gay men South Ai, turng them upsi down and owng them.

South Ai’s Jozi Cats, the first gay gby team ai, is g provotive advertisg mpaign to rec members to s the macho world of sports, ’s not easy to be openly gay — and sults like the make difficult to e out the locker one fledglg gby team is g such stereotyp to not only create awarens of homophobia, but to promote self as a safe haven for those who don’t feel fortable wh the game’s this year, Johannburg-based Jozi Cats is Ai’s first gay gby team — and s provotive marketg mpaign has had a greater impact than s members ever dreamed possible. “We had to e words — tradnal gay slurs — which didn’t need translatn to the broar straight muny, which people would get whout too much explanatn. In sports-crazed South Ai, gby equals manls, but now the untry's first gay gby club is challengg stereotyp.

*BEAR-MAGAZINE.COM* GAY RUGBY TEAM IN SOUTH AFRICA

The gay gby players are dismantlg stereotyp wh their powerful new mpaign. - Upworthy .

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