After meeting
Tuesday with gay rights groups, representatives from the
New York Rangers and Madison Square Garden pledged to
address the antigay slurs that are frequently screamed
at the hockey team’s games, according to a
story in The New York Times. New York City
council speaker Christine Quinn sat in on the meeting. ''The
Rangers and MSG/Cablevision agreed to implement a
specific action plan based on the recommendations we
made at the meeting,'' Kevin Jennings, executive
director of the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education
Network, told the Times. “We are very excited
about their willingness to engage in dialogue, take
actions, and become an active participant in creating
a less hostile atmosphere at Madison Square
Garden.”
After meeting
Tuesday with gay rights groups, representatives from the
New York Rangers and Madison Square Garden pledged to
address the antigay slurs that are frequently screamed
at the hockey team’s games, according to a
story in The New York Times. New York City
council speaker Christine Quinn sat in on the meeting.
''The Rangers and
MSG/Cablevision agreed to implement a specific action
plan based on the recommendations we made at the meeting,''
Kevin Jennings, executive director of the Gay,
Lesbian, and Straight Education Network, told the
Times. “We are very excited about their
willingness to engage in dialogue, take actions, and become
an active participant in creating a less hostile atmosphere
at Madison Square Garden.”
The meeting came
one month after a New York Times article
described gay fans’ frustration with what they saw as
a homophobic atmosphere -- and the team’s
unwillingness to acknowledge the problem.
A regular at
Rangers games, Jennings said the atmosphere was so
uncomfortable that he had to stop attending. Other fans
reported being booed when the name of their group, the
New York City Gay Hockey Association, appeared on the
monitors above the ice.
Jennings and Jeff
Kagan, director of the gay hockey association, told the
Times they were pleased with the team’s
response. At the meeting, Jennings said, they discussed
making a public service announcement and requiring
more sensitivity training for Rangers employees.
(The Advocate)
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