Stonewall Sports, Fargo’s first LGBTQ league, breaking barriers and building community – INFORUM

FARGO — The grassy field at Gooseberry Mound Park teemed with mauve, periwinkle, cardinal red and lemon Sunday, Aug. 14, the day of downtown Fargo’s Pride Parade.

On one side of the playing area, named Boschee Field after Democratic Rep. Josh Boschee, the Fargo Freeballers practiced stretching and warming up under a summer sun. The excitement for the upcoming game of kickball was contagious.

Across the field from them, the Kick Me Baby One More Time team talked strategy.

For decades, the metro area has not had a bar or regularly open meeting place outside of the FM Pride Collective and Community Center where gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer and nonbinary people could meet. But that changed last week when Stonewall Sports, a national LGBTQ+ and ally nonprofit organization, added its 24th chapter in Fargo.

“We have no gay bars here, and this is about getting involved in the community. An organization like this doesn’t even exist anywhere in the state at all,” said Scottie Knollin, a spokesperson for Stonewall Fargo. Like many others, his cheeks glistened with glitter, remnants from walking in the Pride parade where thousands of residents attended.

“This was a needed thing,” Knollin said. “I am not an athlete, but I like having fun.”

Knollin’s sentiment represents the core of Stonewall Sports. Anyone can participate, and competition is healthy, but the most important exercise is to have fun, said Candi Wills, Stonewall’s national sports director.

Wills came from Boston to attend the first game of kickball for the organization’s newest chapter.

The process for a chapter being accepted into the league isn’t simple: a proposal must be written, budgets need to be organized, sponsors have to be found and the community has to show a need, which in Fargo was more than evident, Wills said.

“In Fargo, they were like, ‘We don’t have anything for the queer community. We don’t have queer sports,’” Wills said, adding that the online membership and turnout for the event came close to rivaling large cities.

The lack of a place for LGBTQ+ people to meet and socialize was a problem that needed to be addressed, especially when lawmakers around the nation, including North Dakota, sent an “unprecedented number of anti-LGBTQ measures” to state legislators in 2021, according to the Human Rights Campaign, an organization that began in 1989 to end discrimination against LGBTQ+ people.

“We’ve seen time and time again that for every step of progress we sometimes see two steps backward. Our rights will continue to be chipped away at if we don’t fight back,” Boschee said during a speech after the Pride Parade.

Sports, for some LGBTQ+ community members, brought stress while growing up, which compounded emotional issues for many.

“Most people were taught that being gay was wrong or evil. Imagine the thought that if someone finds out that there is something wrong with me, and over something they have no choice over,” Wills said.

One of the founders of the club, Trevor Nordquist, said they already have 11 teams and 159 players registered. The group’s Facebook page has 400 members. All members pay a small fee to participate in the games, which for the first half-year or more will be limited to kickball.

Later, the league can add additional sports like pickleball, tennis, dodgeball and others that can be played inside during the cold winter months. Next spring, other sports like cornhole and trivia may be added to Fargo’s roster, Nordquist said.

Nordquist moved to Fargo from Atlanta in 2021, and he saw a need to “help build the community,” he said.

“Having Stonewall in Fargo is extremely important as the city continues to grow. It provides a safe place for the LGBTQ community and allies to come together,” he said.

Suzanne Blum Grundyson, the Minneapolis representative to the national board, said Stonewall Fargo is a managed chapter, which can compete with other Stonewall groups and potentially one day at a national competition.

“But the most important part to this is to be in community with queer folks and allies. Men and boys grow up in sports learning that it was not a safe place for them. As a girl growing up, I was proud of my athleticism, but I couldn’t come out. It was a secret place, a painful place. But that has changed,” Blum Grundyson said.

“I know people are really excited to be visible in the community, and I can tell you that there are so many cool connections you can make through sport,” she said.

Wills shared a similar story about her childhood — having to keep her sexual orientation a secret and always being afraid someone would find out.

“The people who want change the most are the ones who must wait the longest. It’s always two steps forward, one step back,” Wills said.

Stonewall is not only a sports league, they’re also involved in LGBTQ+ issues.

“We go to protests and march, and we hope to see this in Fargo,” Wills said.

In places like Boston or New York City, the queer community has outlets for fun and sports, she said.

“To get to come here to a smaller city like Fargo is really important to us. Places that still might not be all that safe to be open. At Stonewall, trans, gay, everyone must all feel welcome,” Wills said.

Bias against the LGBTQ+ community still exists in Fargo, Nordquist said.

Three playing fields were named after LGBTQ+ pioneers including: Boschee, the first openly gay legislator in the state; Jon Lindgren, the mayor who declared the first Gay Pride Proclamation in Fargo’s history; and Carrie Evans, the first openly lesbian elected official in North Dakota.

“This is a way to get connected, a great way to welcome people to our community. It’s exciting,” Boschee said.

Not all members of Stonewall Fargo are LGBTQ+ individuals, Knollin said, adding that some queer people are hesitant about joining up with other already established area leagues.

“Many adult leagues are on a different level of competition. While we encourage competition, we strive for a league where everyone is welcome. All skill levels. We can be competitive, but first and foremost, have fun,” Nordquist said.

Registration is closed for the season, but those who are interested in joining the winter season can start with the Stonewall Sports – Fargo Facebook page at www.facebook.com/groups/stonewallsportsfargo/.

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