Navigating allyship: straight and queer male athlete’s accounts of building alliances

Abstract

ABSTRACT In this article, the authors explore the ways that allyship and queer-straight alliance-building are constructed by a group of men who have participated in a men’s health promotion and human rights project to promote inclusion in and through sport. Examining ten participants’ accounts, collected through online semi-structured interviews, we explore the benefits and challenges of alliance-building between privileged and marginalised group members by foregrounding both straight and queer voices and experiences. We conclude with reflections on the challenges encountered in the health and human rights project as indicative of both the limitations and the productive possibilities for (un)learning allyship and developing more ‘horizontal’ forms of alliance-building through highlighting pluralistic voices and experiences.