Local queer, trans and allied youth can now find a sense of belonging in the Tucson sports community with a series of free, inclusive soccer workshops this summer.
The Queer Trans Youth Soccer Tucson camp is held at a local park every Thursday from 6 to 8 p.m. until Aug. 4 for youth ages 10 to 15 years old.
Youth who identify as queer, trans, or are allies of the LGBTQ+ community can participate in the workshops hosted by queer and trans adults in Tucson. In addition, those ages 16 to 19 can apply to become assistant coaches for the program.
The camp's purpose is to provide a prejudice-free zone for local youth to enjoy soccer with individuals they can relate to.
“I think the main thing is inclusivity,” says Claire Taylor, one of the founders and coaches of the camp. “We want to be able to get kids who have been excluded by law, all these laws that are coming on the books, we want to have a place for them to really participate, build teamwork, learn some sports and some life skills and really have some community to lean back on as well.”
The aspiring nonprofit organization started nearly three months ago in response to recent legislation aimed at transgender youth.
On March 30, Gov. Doug Ducey signed SB 1165 and SB 1138 into law to preclude transgender girls from participating in women’s sports and to make it illegal for doctors to perform “irreversible gender reassignment surgery” on minors. The legislation is intended to “protect participation and fairness for female athletes and to ensure that individuals undergoing irreversible gender assignment surgery are of adult age,” Ducey wrote in a letter earlier this year.
“I think in response to those laws that were enacted, and, you know, my and other people's passion for being able to play soccer and create those spaces, we decided let's create a workshop series where trans, queer and allied youth can really feel empowered in that space,” says Sasha Timpson, one of the founders and coaches of the camp.
The camp has received the support of the local Ward 3 office and council member Kevin Dahl.
Rowan, 10, left, and Archer, 7, right, pose with the queer trans flag at one of the Queer Trans Youth Soccer Tucson workshops.
“We wrote a proposal and we were able to present it to the folks in Ward 3, Kevin Dahl’s office,” Timpson said. “Claire and I went and we made our proposal to them and they have helped us out with COVID relief funds. That's kind of how it all started.”
With the funds, the program offers free admission, free snacks and beverages and even free “swag” for the participants, such as T-shirts, shin guards, cleats and even water bottles for those who need it.
The organization has also partnered with local community space, Splinter Collective, which offers a helping hand with the nonprofit and administrative work.
Since the start of the workshops this summer, the program has consistently had several participants and has received “a lot of positive feedback,” Taylor says.
Bringing positive representation to Tucson’s young LGBTQ+ community
A typical workshop features team-building activities, including new soccer skill drills each week, followed by scrimmages and “good-hearted competition,” Timpson says. Of course, each workshop includes plenty of snack and refreshment breaks and a queer-trans flag staked near the field to provide some visual representation of the group.
The program is run by several volunteer coaches who are active in the local LGBTQ+ community.
Taylor holds doctorate and Juris Doctor degrees from the University of Arizona and Timpson works as a manager for the Community Gardens of Tucson. Both play on the Southern Arizona Gender Alliance’s Tucson Fierce Pride soccer team, which is how they met and became friends.
“I think we're really hoping that, in this time, when kind of everybody is kind of attacking trans queer youth, they see that there are all these coaches and successful trans queer adults who have been out there and are doing great,” Taylor says. “And I hope that they can see us maybe as a little bit of a role model or, you know, if not that, just knowing that they have a future and that it's going to be OK.”
While having representation, in general, is essential, Timpson says encouraging positive representation is even more crucial.
“Positive representation is such a big part of it,” they said. “I think, so often in the media, we see like, queer and trans tragedy, you know, we see an upheaval of people's safety and rights and a threatening of those things. And when you're a kid, knowing these things about yourself and seeing that they are paired with violence and stigma and uncertainty, that's also representation, but not very helpful representation to have anyone thriving. And so I think to have an outlet that's like, ‘yeah, we can be playful and goofy and creative and have fun and get good at a skill together and build this team and community’ is like the positive representation we need to just, you know, to see ourselves.”
As the group plans to work on obtaining their 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, they hope that more models of this inclusive program will pop up around Tucson and beyond because seeing how excited the kids are about the workshops is the “best part,” Taylor says.
“The kids are just like, incredible,” Timpson says. “They just are amazing in every way and it's so fun to get to play with the kids and, you know, come up with fun games and just laugh and be in a really supportive group of people who genuinely care about each other.”
To sign up for the Queer Trans Youth Soccer Tucson camp or to make a donation, email qtsoccerprogram@gmail.com or visit their Instagram page for more information about the program.
