Our school had equal opportunities, but they didn't publicly challenge sexist or homophobic behavior. In one class, this person who they felt hadn't worked the hardest, had to wear a pink belt in the next lesson.

What does that say? That there's something wrong with wearing pink? That it’s feminine? That feminine is weak? Why do you have these engendered thoughts regarding what’s strong and what’s effective?

That's not martial arts, that's rubbish.

One of the senior teacher based his entire teaching on homophobic scenarios, so he’d be going like, “If a man puts his hand on you, or if a man looks at you.”

And I’d think, “Hold on a minute. Firstly, all your techniques are attacking gay men. Secondly, you're not a nice looking man, so why would anyone want to touch you or look at you in the first place?”

Instead of the other people and senior teachers stepping forward to say, “We don't have that happening here, we won't allow that and we apologize for that,” they just remained silent, and people laughed.

I was just a low level blackbelt, I was not in a position to challenge that, so I wrote to the person in charge, and I said, “Not only did you just tolerate this behavior, you actually condoned it through your silence. You then gave this guy an award for his contribution to the martial arts at the end of the session. So you celebrated someone who has stated really hateful views.”

And now, 20 years later, you record that as a hate crime in England.

And the guy who was in charge was like, “Oh no, as soon as it finished, I went and spoke to him about it.”

And I'm like, “It doesn't matter, because you allowed that behaviour publicly, and all the harm that was done. All the people that felt that and heard that in that room, thought it was the acceptable way to behave. So I'm not coming back to this environment ever.”

That was the end of that.

Continued: https://www.pixstory.com/story/degendersports-through-our-existence-we-give-others-the-right-to-enjoy-their-own-existence1680606715/207917