(Logo via the league’s Facebook)
ORLANDO | Central Florida Softball League announced it was updating its team roster requirements June 26 after players voiced their concerns over a “reverse discriminatory rule.”
CFSL shared a new policy with players that limits the amount of straight people on a team via a survey, intending to allow five straight people per team. This is the first time CFSL formally set a cap on non-LGBTQ+ player participation per team, the organization noted.
In the updated version, the policy only applies to Open Division and there is an exemption for players who have been in good standing since Spring 2021. Effective immediately, the policy states:
“Teams in the Open Division may have no more than five (5) self-identifying non-LGBTQ+ (heterosexual) players on their official roster. The CFSL Board will use self-identification information provided during the previous season’s registration to verify player eligibility and ensure compliance at the time of roster submission.
“Players who have been CFSL members in good standing since Spring 2021 are exempt from being counted toward the five-player limit,” it continues. “Subject to final approval by CFSL Board of Directors. This limitation does not apply to Gay Softball World Series (GSWS) roster qualification rules.”
On June 19, player Alyssa Hatch started a petition on Change.org to advocate for a change in the policy and gained 338 supporters. The petition changed to “victory” on June 26 after the change in policy.
Bobby Agagnina, CFSL commissioner, says there was a four-hour meeting via Zoom on June 25 with select members to discuss the policy changes. He says the Women’s Division will be excluded from his process as their national organization does not have any guidance on that set.
“It was a great dialogue, the epitome of responsibility and support and understanding,” Agagnina says. “…But together we came up with … a more inclusive, more passionate policy to move ourselves forward.”
Hatch wrote a thank you message in her update titled “Rule reversed for Women’s Division.” She thanked everyone who supported the cause and said it meant a lot to get the result she and others wanted.
“I’m happy to say after a very productive meeting with the board, committees, and some passionate representatives from the league this rule is no longer in effect for our Women’s division in the Central Florida Softball League,” Hatch wrote. “This result is what we were fighting for, and it came from the outpouring of support from our community near and far. I do want to thank the board for quickly organizing a meeting and hearing our voices.”
Agagnina says this change was made because the board noticed the number of LGBTQ+ members was declining and they saw the number of straight allies increasing. He says this needed to be done to ensure equity for queer members.
“Nowhere in the policy, the first one or the revised one, did it say that our straight players and allies were not welcomed in the league,” Agagnina says. “That’s just false. And the board made sure to underscore that point. Nowhere did it say that we do not want our allies to join the league.”
For more information about the Central Florida Softball League, visit CFSLeague.org.
