Humanists reject discrimination against people on the basis of their gender or sexual identity. Frieder Otto Wolf, President of the Humanist Association of Germany, reminded us of this last Wednesday in a letter to the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) and the members of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) from the DOSB.
Previously, in the course of the 2012 Olympic Games, there had been an increasing number of reports highlighting the poor social conditions for lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transsexuals (LGBT) in sport. Among other things, the very low proportion of openly homosexual athletes attracted attention. Of the approximately 10,000 athletes who took part in this year’s games in London, only 23 were openly homosexual. A meeting place for gay and lesbian athletes received no support from the IOC and no place on the Olympic site. Homosexuality is still criminalized in over a third of the participating countries. British human rights activists also criticized the fact that female Olympians are disadvantaged in competitions and at award ceremonies. “Discrimination against people who do not have the sexual identity of the majority in society should not be allowed to continue at an event like the Olympic Games or in German sport itself,” said Wolf. He considered it an “appalling grievance” that people apparently have to deny their own sexual identity in order to maintain their sporting career. “And even if sport may be a historical domain of men, the achievements of female athletes today should be of equal importance.” In the letter, Frieder Otto Wolf finally made it clear to the DOSB Executive Board that he wanted to receive answers soon to the questions he had raised about the situation of LGBT people in sport and the DOSB and IOC’s policy on reducing gender discrimination and homophobia. This is because discrimination on the basis of gender contradicts the principles of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights and those of the Olympic Charter. “Openness, fairness and tolerance are indispensable values that must not be abandoned at any time in sport, especially when it comes to such issues.”
