Essex Cricket will be joining the cricket community in celebrating Rainbow Laces alongside Stonewall from July 30-August 1.
It’s the fourth year the game has come together to celebrate LGBTQ+ inclusion in cricket, and Essex Cricket are committed in making our Club and The Cloudfm County Ground a welcoming and safe place for LGBT+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) people, and their friends and families.
We will continue to promote an inclusive community across Essex through the Club and our Community work. The Rainbow Laces campaign is important in sending a strong message of zero tolerance to homophobic, biphobic and transphobic behaviour, whether on the pitch, within our ground or on our online community.
Earlier this year the ECB supported what was believed to be the first fully inclusive LGBTQ+ game of cricket – between Graces CC and Unicorns CC – and in September the business will be represented in the march at London Pride.
ECB Chief Executive Officer Tom Harrison said: “I’m proud to see our game standing squarely behind inclusion.
“We’re driven by our desire to open up the game to as many people as possible. We want cricket to be a game for everyone and we want the LGBTQ+ community to both feel welcome and able to be themselves in our sport.
“The rainbow laces and the rainbow stumps are a powerful symbol of support, and it’s good to see the players and the wider game reaffirming our desire to be a sport that everyone feels they can be involved in.”
Erin Williams, Sport Engagement Manager at Stonewall (she/her & they/them) said: “We’re delighted that the ECB is celebrating Rainbow Laces for the fourth time this summer.
“Sport has an incredible ability to bring us together, and it’s brilliant to see the dedication that the ECB has shown to LGBTQ+ inclusion over the years.
“This year saw the first fully inclusive LGBTQ+ game of cricket, between Graces CC and Unicorns CC, and we’re excited to see The Hundred matches throughout the summer. We’re proud to be working with the ECB to make cricket a game where everyone is free to play as themselves.”
