Sports camp cancelled after Orange lodge raises 'concerns' over inclusion of kids from GAA club

A CHILDREN’S SPORTS summer camp scheduled to take place in Co Down has been cancelled after the local Orange lodge raised “significant concerns” over the inclusion of children from a GAA club.

The camp was to be run by the North Down Cricket Club. The camp was to be broadly focused on cricket, the club said, including children from ten local sports and community clubs. Among them was a small group of children from a local GAA club, the club said in a statement.

Goldsprings of Comber Loyal Orange Lodge stated that residents in the Comber area were concerned about the “proposed or perceived move of the GAA into the local community”.

It said that it supported the promotion of sport and youth engagement, but that local residents had reservations about the GAA’s “cultural and historical affiliations”, saying that the organisation has in the past “celebrated or commemorated individuals associated with paramilitary activity”.

It added that until the GAA takes “meaningful steps” to ensure that it is inclusive and sensitive to the identity of the “Protestant, Unionist, and Loyalist community”, it would be viewed with opposition.

First Minister, Sinn Féin’s Michelle O’Neill, said that the developments are “worrying and unacceptable”.

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“Children should be allowed to play together at summer camp without facing intolerance,” she said. O’Neill stated that political representatives need to send a message and overcome what she called “unacceptable intolerance”.

The cricket club at the centre of the storm said it reflects the “best of our community and our Ulster-British heritage”. It welcomes people from all walks of life, it said, and the sports summer camp was meant to “give young people from different backgrounds a chance to enjoy cricket, try something new, and simply have fun”.

In the wake of the negative reaction, the spirit of the camp was at the risk of being lost, and the club have decided not to proceed, it stated.

“But let’s be clear: openness is not a threat. Respect is not surrender. And our culture is not so fragile that it can’t be shared.”

Brian MacNeice, chair of Cricket Ireland, has put out a statement saying plans are being made to run a similar sports camp at Stormont.

“Cricket Ireland and the Northern Cricket Union are dismayed and disappointed at the events which have led to the cancellation of the youth sports camp at North Down Cricket Club,” MacNeice said. 

“North Down has been at the forefront of youth development in recent times. Participation in multiple sports by young people has been recognised as having considerable benefits both in sporting terms and mental wellbeing. It can only be to the detriment of the children concerned that this cancellation has occurred.

“Cricket is a sport for all and both CI and NCU actively encourage diversity, inclusion and equality in our game. Working with other sports in the sharing of facilities and the creation of opportunities for young people is a key aspect of this strategy.

“We applaud North Down Cricket Club’s initiative in planning the sports camp. We are committed to following through on the initiative and Cricket Ireland and the Northern Cricket Union are making plans to run a similar sports camp at Stormont.

“We have therefore approached East Belfast GAA and offered an opportunity to participate in this alternative sports camp which will also include other sports clubs. We look forward to further engagement with the GAA, and other governing bodies, for the benefit of all.

“We call on all community leaders to show leadership and actively support this initiative. Sport can bring communities together and we must all act in partnership to ensure this is the case.”

Written by Emma Hickey and posted on TheJournal.ie