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WFDF approves Non-Discrimination Policy

In News, Official Communication, Press Release * Official Communication by WFDF

Strengthens its commitment to equity and equality in all aspects

The World Flying Disc Federation (“WFDF”) is pleased to announce that the Board of Directors has approved a WFDF Non-Discrimination Policy during their Board meeting on 20 September 2020.

Among its various provisions, the policy:

·       affirms that WFDF is “fully committed to the principles and practice of equality of opportunity. It is responsible for ensuring that all people, irrespective of race or ethnic origin, culture, religion or belief, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability, socio-economic status, and physical attributes, have a genuine and equal opportunity to participate in Flying Disc at all levels and in all roles;”

·       states that WFDF ”and its members, have an ethical, moral and business responsibility to take stock of their current position and plan for the inclusion of a wider range of participants;” and

·       establishes that this “policy has been produced to prevent/tackle any potential/current discrimination or other unfair treatment, whether intentional or unintentional, direct or indirect, against its employees, members, participants and volunteers.”

“Flying Disc is a sport that embraces all players, regardless of race or ethnic origin, culture, religion or belief, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability, socio-economic status, and physical attributes,” stated WFDF President Robert “Nob” Rauch. “ It is a sport that is built on respect — respect for one another and for the game itself, in what we call the Spirit of the Game. As an international sports federation composed of national governing bodies, WFDF has always run our champion events in as inclusive a manner as possible, and required that our members incorporate a non-discrimination clause in their Bylaws. But this passive approach is not enough.“

“We are resolutely against racism and discrimination of any kind and recently strengthened our own governance structures with a view toward eradicating any such behavior.  We continue to make progress in the area of gender equality but recognize that we must take a much more pro-active approach to promote racial equality in our sport.”

“For WFDF and our members, we need to continue to grow our sport and make it more accessible to people of color.  This includes introducing the sport into developing countries in Africa and Latin America, supporting programs with our development grants.  In the developed world, we need to encourage our member federations to grow their youth programs, especially in the inner cities, and to find ways to make our sport more accessible to different communities.”

“We hope the introduction of this policy will encourage a constructive dialogue across our global Flying Disc family and we plan to host a racial equality workshop during one of our major events next year to provide our organizers and active athletes with the tools to better address the historical and current impact of discrimination, whether intentional or unintentional, explicit or implicit, as it relates to our sport.”

The policy can be found here.