NHL Shows Its Pride with Rainbow Pride Tape

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Here’s a fun story from the NHL courtesy of Joe My God:

The Edmonton Oilers became the first NHL team to use Pride Tape, a multicolored tape to promote inclusiveness in sports. The Oilers used the tape Sunday during their annual Skills Competition at Rexall Place. “Many view professional hockey players as role models and our team felt this was a great initiative to let every person know they’re welcome in the game of hockey,” defenseman Andrew Ference told the Oilers website. “We’re all proud to play for a team and city that supports diversity and human rights.”

Wells and Calder Bateman Communications are working together on a Kickstarter campaign to raise enough funds to produce 10,000 rolls of the tape. As of Sunday, they have raised more than $40,000 of their $54,000 campaign goal. On the Kickstarter page, Pride Tape is described as a badge of support from the teammates, coaches, parents and pros to young LGBTQ players. It shows every player that they belong on the ice, that everyone is on the same team and your help is needed to make it a reality.

Jamaica Plans First LGBT Pride Festival

2276While security issues have made a traditional LGBT parade impossible, the island country of Jamaica announced this week that it will hold a week-long pride festival. According to The Advocate,

Running concurrent with Jamaica’s Emancipation and Independence celebrations, Pride Jamaica will take place from August 1-8 in the capital city of Kingston. Festivities will kick off with a flash mob, followed by an opening ceremony. Then, over the next few days, there will be an art exhibition, open mic night, flag raising ceremony, and coming out symposium. Gay Star News reports that the symposium will “also feature allies, who will share their experiences of what it is like to publicly support the LGBT community in Jamaica, as well as an acoustic concert for women and a pride party.”

The news of the festival is groundbreaking given Jamaica’s sad reputation for countrywide violent homophobia. Event organizers are working to keep the event safe. Latoya Nugent, the associate director of the Jamaica Forum of Lesbians, All-Sexuals and Gays said, “We will pause the negative vibrations from anti-gay lobby groups and focus on the strides we have made as a community. More importantly, we will recommit to initiatives that see us moving forward as one community.”