Proud and Palace are Crystal Palace’s official LGBT+ supporters’ group. Originally founded as a Twitter page in 2014, they now have over 300 members, a popular podcast and stage various meet and greets on matchdays throughout the year.
“As much as anything, it’s just a group that allows people to know there are other fans like them, who love Palace just as much as they do,” says co-chair Emma Wright, who first went to Selhurst Park when she was eight. “We want to bring fans together to enjoy the matchday experience.
“We're all united by our passion for Palace. I'm a season ticket holder and was essentially a fan 50 years before I was even born. My granddad took that decision out of my hands and so Palace is part of who I am.
“It was a real labour of love to set up Proud and Palace and we've grown so fast. We allow football fans from the LGBT+ community to feel like they're not on their own. I think we understand that we can’t necessarily change the world, but we can definitely change things in our corner of south London.”
The Rainbow Laces campaign promotes LGBT+ inclusion in football at both grassroots and elite level.
Research from inclusive football team Stonewall FC suggests 43 percent of the LBGT+ community don’t feel entirely comfortable inside a football stadium, and we at The FA and Proud and Palace are working hard to lower those numbers and ultimately reduce that percentage to zero.
“Palace have always had LGBT+ supporters and the club has been really good at promoting inclusion,” says Proud and Palace’s other co-chair Stephanie Fuller, who also chairs Pride In Football – an umbrella group for all LBGT+ fan movements in the United Kingdom.
“It’s good to see The FA are behind us, too. The Rainbow Laces campaign raises our profile. It amplifies our message and helps educate a wider audience.
“One way we can ensure inclusion is to also have straight allies. It’s important to not just work with LGBT+ groups, but also reach out to the wider football community. I think we've done that pretty effectively.
“For example, being in the Premier League with one of our main rivals, Brighton, is obviously fantastic for the club, but it also presents some challenges. We've had a problem with casual homophobic chants in the past due to Brighton’s thriving LBGT+ community.
“As a result, to preempt any further incidents, and show such discrimination is not endorsed by Palace, we put together a statement that was signed by 25 Palace supporters’ groups from all over the world. It reiterated that we don’t tolerate homophobia. The majority of those who signed it were straight allies, who are often first to call out homophobic discrimination.
“All of the exposure, banners and general support we get during Rainbow Laces is fantastic, but ultimately we're trying to build a culture of inclusion 365-days-per-year. I think you achieve this by having fans talking to and educating other fans rather than solely being told what to do or how to act by their clubs.”
Proud and Palace marked the Rainbow Laces campaign with a number of special activations. Like many grassroots players, and wider fans, many of their members wore the traditional rainbow-coloured laces on their football boots or trainers.
Proud and Palace also worked with Crystal Palace to create a special limited-edition Rainbow Laces shirt, which went on sale in the club shop ahead of Tuesday night’s 1-0 Premier League victory over Bournemouth – a win that keeps Roy Hodgson’s side firmly in the hunt for European football.
Proud and Palace also reached out to Bournemouth’s LGBT+ supporters’ group, Proud Cherries. This is a common gesture they make ahead of every home fixture, inviting visiting LGBT+ fans from the opposing side for a pre-match drink before they walk to Selhurst Park together. The groups often exchange pendants, too, much like team captains before kick-off.
Palace, liking this novel and inclusive pre-match ritual, decided to invite both groups pitch-side where they met chairman Steve Parish and various players ahead of kick off.
“As a fan there's always a buzz about being on the pitch and seeing Selhurst Park from the perspective of the players,” says Wright. “It's even more amazing when you're there because the players and chairman are supporting the cause you're so passionate about.
“I was hyped before the game to have some photos with Martin Kelly, James McArthur and Connor Wickham. Steve Parish has always supported us and even mentioned us in his pre-match programme notes. To have him shake my hand and tell us we're doing a great job provides such a reassurance that the club is behind us.”
Proud and Palace continues to grow from strength to strength. And one of their goals for 2020 is to not only continue to tackle or prevent discrimination, but also further support the transgender community. This includes making practical suggestions, like unisex toilets at football grounds or selling gender-fluid football shirts.
"I'm hugely conscious that we need to support our transgender community,” admits Wright. “We’ve had members who stopped coming to games 30 years ago because they didn’t feel safe, but through our group they now feel more comfortable coming back.”
“Telling the stories of all of our fans is so important,” adds Fuller. “Many of our members were there when Crystal Palace went into administration in 2010. They donated to the survival cause and pitched in to clean the stadium after games. No one should be able to make them feel unwelcome. The message we want to send is that it’s not OK to exclude anyone, in or outside the LGBT+ community, from their own football club.
As the 2019 Rainbow Laces campaign comes to a close, we remain committed to promoting LGBT+ inclusion at all levels of the game. To achieve this goal, we've created a football-specific toolkit to allow clubs and leagues to amplify the Rainbow Laces campaign and provided some suggestions for how you can showcase your commitment to LGBT+ inclusion. You can download our activation pack and help us show that football is For All.
You can follow Proud and Palace on Twitter via @ProudandPalace and for a full list of LGBT+ supporters groups go to prideinfootball.co.uk.
Hear directly from Proud and Palace why it's so important for all fans to feel comfortable and welcome on matchday.
