VCFL to Extend its Discrimination Policies

The country football fraternity, along with parts of the broader general public of Victoria, would be aware through wide media coverage of the Ken Campagnolo case.

Mr Campagnolo was a sports trainer for the Bonnie Doon FC for several years until his employment was terminated by the club in April 2007 under the allegation by Mr Campagnolo that the club's reason for termination was because of his sexual orientation.

As a consequence of the of the action of the Bonnie Doon FC, Mr Campagnolo lodged a Statement of Complaint against various parties to the Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission alleging 'discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation in the areas of clubs and goods and services and victimisation pursuant to the Equal Opportunity Act 1995 (Vic).'

Two of the parties that had Statements of Complaint issued against them were the Victorian Country Football League (VCFL) and their Chief Executive Officer, Glenn Scott.

Mr. Scott, representing himself and the VCFL, met with Mr Campagnolo recently at the VEO and HRC and the matter was settled.

Without any admission of liability the VCFL wishes to advise the following:

"The VCFL strongly reject all acts and notions of discrimination throughout all levels of community football and netball and the very communities these clubs represent.

The discrimination at the centre of this matter, sexual orientation discrimination, as with all forms of discrimination, is totally unacceptable.

The VCFL Board are committed to the formulating of appropriate policies (including complaints and disciplinary procedures) as well as appropriate training programs, including sexual orientation discrimination in the coming months.

The training and delivering of the messages contained in the policies will follow the same regularity as that of existing discrimination policies of the VCFL."

As a result of the meeting with the VCFL and Glenn Scott, Mr Campagnolo agrees to release both the VCFL and Glenn Scott from any action or claim arising out of the allegations of discrimination and/or harassment.

*End of Statement*

Glenn Scott

Chief Executive Officer

WorkSafe Victoria Country Football League

Bent TV Special

Bent TV did an extended interview with Ken on Saturday for a one-hour special to be aired on Channel 31 and YouTube. The team plan to travel to Mansfield and interview some of the other people involved. No date has yet been fixed for transmission.
In other news, Anne Mitchell of Gay & Lesbian Health Victoria, Nick Tollhurst of Beyond Blue, Rob Mitchell and Doug Pollard of the RJM Trust met with the board of the Victorian Country Football League at the MCG Friday.
Ann gave an impressive presentation outlining the research on the impact of homophobia on young people, especially in rural areas.
The board reacted very positively and are keen to work with the gay community on developing programs within country football to tackle the issue. Further contacts are planned in the near future. Expect to hear more on this soon.
Of course, while all very positive for the future, this doesn't help Ken's current situation, and that still needs urgent improvement.
As mentioned elsewhere, Kens next hearing regarding his cases against the Department of Sustainbility and Environment has been postponed to September. This is disappointing but unavoidable, as the DSE case is the main game and the sooner we can reach a resolution the better.
Meanwhile thanks to all of you who have donated to help Ken: for those of you who haven't, the details of the bank account are at the top left of this page. And if anyone can help with accommodation and work for Ken, preferably but not necessarily in the Mansfield area, please get in touch.

MCV today

There's an update today in MCV and in bnews, following the weekend piece in the Herald Sun and Mondays excellent piece in the Age.
With the AFL now staryting tio swing into line, the focus needs to shift to busting the entrenched homophobia that appears to hold sway in certain parts of high country DSE.

Good News Week

Well, Ken is certainly making the news this week - not just in MCV and bnews, but also in the Sunday Herald Sun and today in the Age. His case has also caught US interest, making the news bulletins of US gay satellite radio station Sirius OutQ 149. Today sees a conciliation hearing at VEOHRC with representatives of the AFL attending.
It seems like we're on track to get all levels of footy to take sexual orientation discrimination seriously at last.
The main problem, however, remains the DSE, with all the pollies siting on their hands, and a hearing date now postponed to September. This is due to the illness of the conciliator, not any sinister motive, but as you can imagine, it has Ken pretty depressed.
But we're heartened by the win Gary Burns has had against John Laws and Steve Price up in Sydney, although a bit dismayed that it took five years to get it.
We hope the DSE will start to see some sense long before September, come down off their high horse, and start volunteering to resolve this issue. We'll certainly be encouraging them to do so.
Thanks for your donations (see bank a/c details at the top of the page) - they will help us pay some of Kens bills (mobile phone to stay in touch, petrol to get to hearings in Melbourne etc.) which are eally difficult on Centrelink benefit alone.

AFL rattled

The AFL is trying to duck responsibility for discrimination in the VCFL and keep out of Ken's case.

It's told the human rights commission that it's anti-discrimination policies only apply to AFL players and administrators - but the policy says it also applies to "affiliated state bodies" such as the VCFL.

The Sunday Herald Sun reports that "Next week there is a meeting, which will be attended by AFL representatives, to discuss the issues Ken Campagnolo had with this country football club and his complaint.

"The CEO of the organisation is not required to attend."

Donate for Ken!

Ken Campagnolo Fund Launched

Many people have asked what they can do to help Ken while he battles to win his rights. In response the RJM Trust has now set up a special fund where you can deposit money to help and support Ken.

Donations will only be used to help Ken practically and directly, not for campaigning. Make your donation to:

R J M Trust Ken Campagnolo Fund
St George Bank South Melbourne
BSB 113-879
A/c No.: 429044701

And please email me with your details so we can keep our records in order, and also say thank you!!

Thanks you all for your help, support and above all the encouragement, which Ken really appreciates. He has already has a win with the Victorian Country Football League, and negotiations are now beginning with the VFL and AFL. We will win through but in the meantime Ken needs all the help he can get.

His home has now been repossessed and will shortly be put up for auction to meet his debts. As a distress sale it’s unlikely to make full market value, which only adds to the injustice. We’ll keep you posted.

Doug Pollard
RJM Trust

VCFL Update - press

Both bnews and MCV carry the news of Ken's win over the Victorian Country Football League this week.

The next step will be a presentation to the VCFL board by community representatives from the RJM Trust, Gay & Lesbian Health Victoria and others.

“It is a substantial step forward,” said Rob Mitchell of the RJM Trust, who is assisting Campagnolo. “This will have a huge impact on same-sex attracted youth in country areas; something like 85% of the abuse that occurs happens in a sporting or a school context, and in a country area the two are very much intertwined.”

"There needs to be a clear and consistent message by the administration that it [homophobia] is not ok," Mr Mitchell says.

"The issue needs to raised front and centre and dealt with in the same way as racial vilification. Players need to be looked after and kept safe."

The VCFL covers around 80 leagues, with approximately 100,000 players across Victoria.