Photo Credit The Assembly
Prideraiser.org raises funds for local LGBTQ+ charities
By Sarah Calise
United States sporting culture has been an enormous part of my life, so take it from me when I say that no fan base compares to the passion and dedication of a soccer supporters group. Move over diehard Red Sox fans and cheeseheads from Green Bay, because soccer supporters can chant and drum laps around you, and their love extends beyond the pitch to elevate social justice issues. In June, fans nationwide will participate in Prideraiser, a coalition of independent soccer supporters that raise money for local LGBTQ+ charities.
Founded in 2017, Prideraiser has made a positive impact on local communities and helped increase the inclusivity of soccer fandom. In total, the organization has raised nearly half a million dollars for LGBTQ+ charities. Much of Prideraiser’s success is due to its fundraising model: it taps into the platform of a soccer team’s “supporters group.”
In soccer, a supporters group is an organized entity independent from the team. They are the lifeblood of the team; they drive the fan experience, maintain a high level of energy throughout a game, and rally around social causes.
“Supporters play a critical role in the development of the culture of a club, and they have a mandate to use their incredible power to do so,” wrote Galen Riley and Dean Simmer, two volunteers for Prideraiser, in a recent email exchange with Connect. “Our model includes not only raising money for a charity in the same place the club calls home, but also outreach to often-neglected demographics that always results in bringing in new fans.”
On May 18, I finally got to experience the atmosphere at Geodis Park, home of Nashville Soccer Club and Major League Soccer’s newest stadium. As a self-identified casual soccer fan, sitting right above the supporters section was bewitching (truly, I think I fell asleep that night counting drum beats). Nashville has six different officially recognized supporters groups; check them all out at The Backline Supporters Collective.
The Roadies are Nashville SC’s original supporters group and they have been part of Prideraiser since 2018. “Our goal as a supporters group of Nashville SC is not only to support the team and foster awareness for the game of soccer, but to contribute meaningfully to the community of supporters and the city of Nashville,” said Jerry Woiderski and Anthony Melo, two leaders from The Roadies.
Individual members of The Roadies can participate in Prideraiser by pledging to donate a certain dollar amount for every goal scored by Nashville SC between May 25 to July 4. The money raised this year by Roadies pledges will go toward Just Us @ Oasis Center.
Not a Nashville SC fan? Not even a soccer fan? That’s fine. Anyone can participate in Prideraiser. The website lists supporter groups from across the United States and Canada. All you have to do is pick one (or more) and fill out an online pledge form. Participants do not fill out any financial information at the time of sign-up, so you can adjust your final contribution once the campaign is over.
Prideraiser is one way supporter groups combine sports with grassroots activism. In Nashville, The Roadies also walk in the annual Pride parade with other local supporters groups, and have helped with the Gender Bender Disco Ball hosted by Just Us. Other causes they are involved with include the Special Olympics Tennessee and Kickin’ It 615, which provides support for children to learn and play soccer regardless of their economic status or cultural background.
Professional sports teams and their front offices continue to struggle with allyship for marginalized communities. It is easy for Pride night events to become another example of the insincere corporatization of Pride, or rainbow capitalism. The independence of supporters groups allows them to step up and reach out when teams fail to do so.
“What leagues and teams need to be doing right now is being more explicit about the real issues affecting our community. We are at a critical moment for queer rights in this country,” stated Woiderski and Melo. “Our own state of Tennessee passed nine anti-LGBTQ+ bills in 2021 and are currently looking to advance fourteen more for 2022. Meanwhile, the messages we get from leagues and teams are purely celebratory and used to sell shirts.”
Galen Riley and Dean Simmer, the volunteers who run Prideraiser, agree with their fellow soccer supporters. MLS teams cannot sell colorful jerseys for one month and think it negates their partnerships with openly homophobic companies or donations made to openly homophobic politicians. “If MLS, or any league for that matter, wants to be a partner and supporter of the LGBTQ+ community, I’d look into why Prideraiser was formed in the first place and investigate why so many members of the LGBTQ+ community feel unwelcome in the stands.”
Upcoming Events
ASSEMBLY PRIDERAISER
Benefitting Nashville Launch Pad
• Nashville SC v San Jose Quakes, 5 p.m. June 11
• Nashville SC v Sporting KC, 5 p.m. June 19
• Nashville SC v DC United, 4 p.m. June 25
• Nashville SC v Orlando City, 6 p.m. June 29.
NASHVILLE ROADIES PRIDERAISER
Benefitting Just Us at Oasis Center
• Nashville SC v San Jose Quakes, 1 p.m. June 11
• Nashville SC v Sporting KC, 1 p.m. June 19
• Nashville SC v DC United, 4 p.m. June 25
For more information, visit prideraiser.org
About Sarah
Sarah Calise (she/they) is a public historian and archivist dedicated to connecting people with their past and preserving important records through digital, written, and verbal storytelling. She currently cares for political and regional collections at MTSU’s Albert Gore Research Center.
In 2021, she founded the organization and digital portal called Nashville Queer History, whose mission is to research and share the LGBTQ+ history of Middle Tennessee in hopes of inspiring local activism, education, and inclusion. Her forthcoming book with Vanderbilt University Press, Y’all Come Out Now Y’Hear, will explore stories from Nashville’s queer past from the 1920s to the modern-day.
