In Maryland and other states, lawmakers have proposed – and in some cases passed – legislation to prohibit transgender youth from participating on sports teams that align with their gender.
But Maryland-based nonprofit Unmatched Athlete is working to create a supportive environment in which LGBTQ+ youth and allies can play sports together.
“It’s really unfortunate and sad that there are states that have laws that are discouraging and are saying that LGBTQ+ youth, specifically trans youth, cannot play sports…. [They’re] denying them of all the wonderful opportunities, all the wonderful life skills and obviously physical skills that kids can learn at a younger age,” said Olanrele Oni, founder and president of Unmatched Athlete.
The nonprofit hosts sports games and activities for youth ages 5-18 years old. They will kick off Pride Month this Saturday, June 1, with an event from 1:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at Union Collective, located at 1700 W. 41st St., Baltimore, MD 21211.
At the Union Collective Pride event, Unmatched Athlete is partnering with Movement Hampden to offer climbing opportunities for ages 5-12 years old from 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m., and for ages 13-18 years old from 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. The Charmery will also provide “ice cream cone creatures” from 1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m.
Starting at 5 p.m., there will be an open mic with the theme “High School: Let’s Talk About It.”
Then at 7 p.m., a drag show featuring the King and Queen of Baltimore Pride and other drag performers will cap off the night. The show is intended for adult audiences, but families may use their discretion whether they are comfortable attending, Oni said.
‘Fed up’
While Black trans women have been among the most vocal advocates for Black Lives Matter and LGBTQ+ rights movements, the killings and discrimination of those same Black trans women have often gone largely unnoticed, Oni said.
The moment reached a boiling point for Oni in the summer of 2020, as protesters took to the streets against police brutality and systemic racism.
“A lot of our Black trans sisters were killed and I was just fed up,” he said. “I was just fed up because I didn’t know what to do.”
Having grown up playing soccer and doing track, Oni saw an opportunity to help LGBTQ+ youth who are interested in sports.
“Sports is one of those avenues where I truly believe has an impact on culture and can be that domino piece and cultural change,” he said. “And if you’re a younger kid and you’re growing up and you don’t see anyone who looks like you or even sounds like you in some cases, and you like sports, then you might already feel like you don’t belong in that space.”
Through sports, they hope to change society more broadly.
“We do this ‘til we are free,” said Justin Fair, vice president of Unmatched Athlete. “No one is free until we are all free. If you see something wrong in the world, that’s not okay…. Think of how you can make change in your community, and it changes one mind at a time.”
Using sports to build connection
Born in Akron, Ohio, Oni moved with his family to Nigeria at a young age.
Oni said it was a privilege to experience living in a different country and that he “would never replace that,” but he acknowledges the fear and anxiety of growing up in a country where homosexuality continues to be criminalized.
“I knew that I was different,” he said. “And I knew I was different in that is not what I should be doing. Like that is a taboo.”
He didn’t talk about girls like his friends did. Instead, he remembers admiring other boys’ haircuts and having a strong desire to spend a lot of time with them.
Although he participated in track and soccer, Oni also had interests that he said “didn’t necessarily align with what they would say as prototypical masculine traits,” like drawing outfits in a fashion book.
Fair said he was a “skinny asthmatic kid, so nobody was expecting sports greatness for me.” He got bullied and, though he liked to play sports in gym class, he struggled to relate to the “burly” kids.
“I realize now as an adult that enjoyment that I had was immediately being hampered because I didn’t know how to alert those feelings of really enjoying play with learning how to get along with other kids because I myself was just this skinny little runt of a kid.”
He wishes other kids would have helped encourage him instead of putting him down.
Through Unmatched Athlete, Fair and Oni hope to foster support among young athletes of all backgrounds.
Celebrating Pride year-round
Founded in July 2020, Unmatched Athlete held its first official event in 2021, a climbing day at Movement Columbia that drew 86 kids.
The nonprofit now has about 200 kids on their member roster. Currently, they host consistent programming in Baltimore City, Baltimore County, Howard County, and Montgomery County, but they hope to expand their reach to all 24 jurisdictions in Maryland – and eventually across the country and even internationally.
To help families overcome transportation barriers that might impede them from attending these sports events, Unmatched Athlete offers a rideshare program, in partnership with the Baltimore Community Foundation and Dick’s Sporting Goods Foundation.
In addition to celebrating Pride Month, the event this Saturday will also serve as a fundraiser for Unmatched Athlete. The organization is looking to hire more coaches, possibly in coordination with local college sports teams; expand programming to new jurisdictions; and partner with local school systems to involve more children.
Unmatched Athlete has 28 events on their calendar this year, including climbing, volleyball, flag football, and other activities. Among their upcoming events is their Unmatched Pride event on July 20 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at The Stadium at the House (2601 Port Covington Drive, Baltimore, MD 21230). It will feature obstacle courses, sports skill challenges, and other activities.
Held in partnership with Under Armour, that event is inspired by the athletes who will not be able to compete openly in the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris because their home countries criminalize members of the LGBTQ+ community.
“Pride isn’t just only celebrated in June,” Oni said. “It should be celebrated every month…. We should always have our due diligence to celebrate Pride, be prideful of who we are, be prideful of our community, and let it know that everyone in our community and outside of our community, for allies as well, are welcome.”
Fair added, “It’s a matter of having an opportunity to celebrate something locally and show by example. To show that there’s a real passion and interest, and that we can locally organize and highlight the point that it’s not okay to discriminate.”
