Fondation Émergence announces that the 2010 Campaign for the International Day Against Homophobia is aimed at the sports world. The purpose of the campaign is to make athletes, those closely or loosely involved in this community, the media, and the general population more aware of the need to combat homophobia linked to both amateur and professional sports.

President of Fondation Émergence Laurent McCutcheon states that “The sports world remains one of the last strongholds that apparently continue to lack concern toward the fight against homophobia. That’s a big piece since everything thought of as being gay or lesbian doesn’t fit with that world.” What’s more, a Léger Marketing survey conducted in 2003 for Fondation Émergence revealed that 61% of men and women in Québec believe that a gay hockey player would not be well received on a professional team. “Has this perception changed since?” asks Mr. McCutcheon. “Homosexuality is not contagious, it’s not an illness, and even less so a crime. We’ve got to tear down the prejudice that stems from a heterosexist upbringing.”

Fondation Émergence plans on joining national-level athletic organisations across Canada and sports celebrities by asking them to support a declaration against any form of discrimination in the sports world. Groups having been contacted over the previous years will be called on again to order materials put out by Fondation and to set up new initiatives to fight against homophobia. Printed tools for this new campaign, in English and in French, can be ordered at www.homophobiaday.org starting on February 4, 2010. Electronic versions will be offered in several languages and adapted to various formats for the Internet, blogs, and social networking.

Last year hundreds of organisations participated in the campaign by posting or distributing promotional materials. With each year, the fight against homophobia campaigns have become an ever-growing success.