Coming from Toulouse, France, I moved to Canada just over five years ago and I continue to learn about all things Canadian. One of the main things I learned about our country is how sport seems to bring all of us together. I have been able to build my community and surround myself with a family in a new country through sport.
My education background includes a Bachelor’s in International Law and a Masters of Law, Economics and Management with a specialty in Sport Management. I spent a lot of time at my best friend’s barn when I was a teenager with her horse and dogs. We would go after school on Fridays and spend the evening and our weekends there. I have always enjoyed the equestrian community and the amazing bond that can be built with horses. I began working in sport in France at the age of 17, working for a variety of national training centres and National Sport Organization’s (NSO), holding roles in high performance and as a Safe Sport Lead, before joining Equestrian Canada (EC).
My mother raised my sister and I to know that, as women, we can do anything we set our mind to. This core belief has followed me throughout my life and made me confident enough to take on challenges that might be uncomfortable or question the status quo. Spending a lot of time in Africa when I was a child, I became aware of racial disparities, discriminatory environments and learned about Black and Indigenous people of colour (BIPOC) issues.
Creating a safe, welcoming, and inclusive environment for all equestrians
Almost three months into my role as Coordinator, REDI and Safe Sport, I am confident EC as an organization has the desire to grow and evolve to become more diverse and inclusive. However, we are starting from square one. At all levels of the sport and throughout the equine industry, there is a need to reflect on our current practice, unlearn, and check our biases in relation to others within our community. As we embark on this journey to create a safe, welcoming, and inclusive environment for all, we are very fortunate to have access to the expertise and support of The Inclusion Project (TIP). TIP is a non-profit consultancy that supports and strengthens intercultural competence through REDI audits, readiness assessment, coaching, mentoring, benchmarking and strategic action planning and framework development. TIP was actively involved in my hiring, and prior to my start they completed an assessment of our organization to establish a benchmark using guiding principles such as stakeholder engagement, BIPOC-explicit strategy, systemic analysis and culture of practice.
The audit found that most of EC’s REDI work to this point has been reactionary and that strategies are yet to be implemented systematically throughout organization. From that observation, a central part of my role is to work both with TIP and EC’s Leadership Team to develop an action plan. The initiative is just beginning, but good strides have been made such as the rollout of anti-racist, diversity, equity, and inclusion education. EC staff were provided the National Truth and Reconciliation Day to partake in learning opportunities in their local communities and supplemented by a discovery workshop.
We know we are further behind than we would like to be as an organization, but we are also very willing to look inwards and challenge our biases, fears, assumptions, privilege and engage in difficult and uncomfortable conversations.
Historically, equestrian sport is known to be an activity reserved for the privileged. As our sport and our society continues to evolve, we have a collective responsibility to help improve access for all. Everyone deserves the opportunity to benefit from the connection, athleticism, and mental health that a relationship with horses can give. In my role, I would like to see us remove barriers to participation and create a wider and more diverse equestrian community that is reflective of all of Canada. We are tasked to make sure racial or financial discrimination does not hinder a participant’s chances of enjoying our sport and potentially one day representing our country on the international stage.
Looking ahead to 2022 and beyond
For February 2022’s Black History Month, the Government of Canada chose the theme: “February and Forever: Celebrating Black History today and every day.” This focus recognizes not only past accomplishments but the daily contributions that Black Canadians make to our country. We were happy to honour and celebrate the legacy of John Ware – a legendary horseman who greatly contributed to Alberta’s ranching, agricultural and cattle industry in the late 1800s/early 1900s.
Working with our PTSOs and staff, I aim to educate and create awareness in our community for athletes and participants of colour to feel welcome from the grassroot to the national level. Representation is such a key factor in bringing awareness to inclusivity and diversity and currently there is little or none in our sport. By having strong and confident BIPOC athletes represented at the national level, we can convey the message that our sport is welcoming to all and everyone should have the opportunity to enjoy equestrian sport and the bond with horses. We will also be working on representing different body sizes and types as well as differing abilities.
I would also like to add that while a big part of my role is education, I am also here to help protect our community from maltreatment and discrimination with safe sport and complaints protocols. I am working on streamlining safe sport processes and working closely with EC’s independent third party to ensure the safest and most welcoming environment for all. If you’ve experienced or witnessed racial injustice or any form of maltreatment or discrimination in the equestrian community, please reach out: Safe Sport (equestrian.ca)
EC’s Inclusion Statement:
While I was taking part in a Queer Queries Webinar organized by the Mount Royal University in Calgary, Canada’s two-time Canadian Olympian swimmer Mark Tewksbury talked about the inclusivity statement put together by the Canadian Olympic Committee in 2018 for Team Canada’s house at the PyeongChang Games. Tewksbury was the first Olympic gold medalist to publicly come out and has always been open and transparent about his path within sport and the adversity he faced. He encouraged everyone on the call to consider adding a similar statement for their own organization, and it inspired me to work on an inclusion statement for EC. I believe this statement embodies how anyone in our sport should feel and, as a community, that we stand supportive of ALL people. I am proud to present to you the Equestrian Canada // Equestre Inclusion Statement:
For any questions regarding Safe Sport or REDI, please contact me, Laurie Ehrman at lehrman@equestrian.ca.