“We Fish As One” and Emma Harrison's fight for female friendly fishing!

[Roger_feederer]

This equality and diversity stuff is a trojan horse for a political agenda. It always is.

Promise you, before long it will be 'thats a bit sexist/racist/homophobic etc, etc, dont worry though, we're the good guys and we will teach you the right way to think.' Just look at the absolute state of football right now with the taking the knee and that.

 

[Total]

I live in Cornwall, Peter. There’s zero ethnic diversity anywhere, not just fishing. But I don’t see it elsewhere either. A few great Eastern European anglers among us, but I don’t see any of the others. But the fact that angling has had very few “issues” with diversity is that the majority white, male status quo has been unintentionally maintained. What’s true and what is publicly perceived can be two different things, but it’s the general public perception that matters when it comes to recruiting new anglers, or preventing them from trying when they think they’ll be the odd one out. And that huge diversity you see isn’t obviously evident. “Numerous” over 60 years out of hundreds of thousands (?) doesn’t make it inclusive. You remember and make note of them because they stand out as such a rarity.

Again, we ARE welcoming and we’d all be really happy to see anybody from any minority group (including women) joining in, but the proportions as they are don’t reflect that for us. We look like a bunch of middle-age and elderly white men on the whole. Why would you have the confidence to join in if you were a young woman, or from any different background? But we’re such a vast majority... I’m really not denying that it IS accessible to all, but if that’s the perception outside of our circle, I repeat, where the bloody hell are all of the women and anybody else?????? 1 or 2 here and there doesn’t count.

Fishing itself isn’t picky. It’s us, or how we look. We’ve not intentionally created the current situation and it’s one that has come from a change in modern lifestyle as well as a generation change. But we’re a little stuck with it at the mo and it works against us, such is our majority. White men get bashed up these days and we’re fair game. The faster some realise that this isn’t going to change any time soon, the faster it will secure a future for fishing. Again, without wanting to repeat myself, this doesn’t mean that most of us need to do anything at all to change, but those in complete denial, or who misunderstand the problem or point, do.

Anyway, digressing from Emma.

Last I’ll post. I’m not qualified to speak on sexism or racism, but there’s a real lack of empathy out there and I think it’s short sighted and unfair.

With regards to Emma - and this goes back to something earlier when it was suggested that there is no problem and it’s just in her head..... When was there ever a problem for anything, ever, that wasn’t in one party’s head? That’s what problems are. If it exists in somebody’s head, it’s a problem. Just because she thinks and feels the way she does, why should she be hacked down and told there’s no problem. It’s in her head. It’s her. (????). Poor woman.

I’m out.

 

[Dave]

What seems to have been overlooked is we're not the police, the fire service, council or other authority, we don't need to meet diversity targets, we are as we are - it's a sport, a hobby, a pastime, and anyone of any age, gender, race or colour, physical or mental ability, is able to participate freely without hindrance simply by picking up a rod and line and getting themselves out on the bank.
The same with match fishing - if it's an open match then it's open to all. If you're the new face on the block it doesn't matter if you are young, old, rich, poor, male, female, gay, straight, black, white, or any other, you will be met with an element of suspicion as potentially you are going to upset the metaphorical apple cart as you will be deemed a threat to their pools monies
Gawd forbid you pick up a brown envelope or win on your first visit, let alone turn up for another match - if you are good you will face an element of criticism, name calling, negative banter, etc, until the day you bomb out and are no longer perceived as a competitive threat.
If you are that sensitive then maybe it's a case of asking yourself if you want to be involved as no one is forcing anyone to participate.

 

[Total]

What seems to have been overlooked is we're not the police, the fire service, council or other authority, we don't need to meet diversity targets, we are as we are - it's a sport, a hobby, a pastime, and anyone of any age, gender, race or colour, physical or mental ability, is able to participate freely without hindrance simply by picking up a rod and line and getting themselves out on the bank.
The same with match fishing - if it's an open match then it's open to all. If you're the new face on the block it doesn't matter if you are young, old, rich, poor, male, female, gay, straight, black, white, or any other, you will be met with an element of suspicion as potentially you are going to upset the metaphorical apple cart as you will be deemed a threat to their pools monies
Gawd forbid you pick up a brown envelope or win on your first visit, let alone turn up for another match - if you are good you will face an element of criticism, name calling, negative banter, etc, until the day you bomb out and are no longer perceived as a competitive threat.
If you are that sensitive then maybe it's a case of asking yourself if you want to be involved as no one is forcing anyone to participate.

^^ .....You've hurt my feelings, I feel excluded etc etc............I'm off to write my blog and inform my wokeness to the multitudes!.....Flounces off stage right, pirouettes and falls straight of my platform/beer crate....

 

[Godber]

If they took a knee before a Maggotdrowners match half off them wouldn't be able to get up again

 

[Total]

If they took a knee before a Maggotdrowners match half off them wouldn't be able to get up again

^^ .......But you look how quickly they move when the baitrunner starts spinning/whirring away at knots!

 

[G0zzer2]

What seems to have been overlooked is we're not the police, the fire service, council or other authority, we don't need to meet diversity targets, we are as we are - it's a sport, a hobby, a pastime, and anyone of any age, gender, race or colour, physical or mental ability, is able to participate freely without hindrance simply by picking up a rod and line and getting themselves out on the bank.
The same with match fishing - if it's an open match then it's open to all. If you're the new face on the block it doesn't matter if you are young, old, rich, poor, male, female, gay, straight, black, white, or any other, you will be met with an element of suspicion as potentially you are going to upset the metaphorical apple cart as you will be deemed a threat to their pools monies
Gawd forbid you pick up a brown envelope or win on your first visit, let alone turn up for another match - if you are good you will face an element of criticism, name calling, negative banter, etc, until the day you bomb out and are no longer perceived as a competitive threat.
If you are that sensitive then maybe it's a case of asking yourself if you want to be involved as no one is forcing anyone to participate.

Dave - I hope posters notice the emoji. I was entering matches in the 1980s with £100 entry fee, and I never had any comments. (Perhaps they didn't see me as a threat!)

 

[Fishingfan22]

Emma’s article could have been spun in a much more positive way if she intends to encourage more female anglers into the sport. Any woman reading would be thinking what a bunch of horrible, sexist pigs male anglers are and would be staying well away from the sport!

I really do feel for her having been subjected to inapropriate comments and remarks - which is completely unacceptable in any situation.

Why should we all be tarred with the same brush, when I’d imagine it’s just a few select idiots lacking in social skills making such comments and remarks. We have plenty of female anglers fishing on a regular basis and I know if any of the male anglers who I know heard a man making such comments, they’d be the first to tell them to shut the f*** up.

Rather than just using Emma’s upset for a story, I really do hope the Angling Trust have offered her some support in the right way. I think the words she has used such as abuse and harassment are very strong indeed - and if that really is the case then you should be contacting the police never mind the AT, I think with something so sensitive and serious (as it comes across) this could have been addressed in a much more dignified way than a shock and attention grabbing article on social media.

 

[mickthechippy]

well, Im about as far from Woke as the next bloke who has spent his life in the building trade

which by the way, was an exclusive world of hairy arsed, sweary mouthed men for centuries, until the last couple of decades or so

there are now plenty of women on site, either in trade, the proffesional services, machine drivers etc etc etc

it was probably a lot harder for them to enter that world, than it ever will be to enter the world of angling whatever the discipline taken

they are now intergrated amongst the workforce and are regarded as as valuable part of the industry as men, they fought thier corner against prejudice and sexism pretty near alone and came out trumps

you may get a bit of banter or ribald comments still, but they can also point to thier works and skill set being as good as the rest

things changed, not by campaigns or suchlike, they changed by the trade accepting thier prescence on site, in the office or wherever they were employed

nobody really notices the sex of a worker anymore, they just get on with whoever they have working with them, whether their female, black, gay or other

 

[Pompous git]

This equality and diversity stuff is a trojan horse for a political agenda. It always is.

Promise you, before long it will be 'thats a bit sexist/racist/homophobic etc, etc, dont worry though, we're the good guys and we will teach you the right way to think.' Just look at the absolute state of football right now with the taking the knee and that.

Spot on.

Whilst washing up type sexist jokes are a bit silly they are not exactly the end of the world, well boo hoo lady.

In the not too distant future the politically correct dam will collapse, will be interesting times once we can speak our minds.

I treat everyone the same, some like to make a song and dance over anything.

 

[G0zzer2]

The main fact that I found strange was to say that Emma had been insulted in a tackle shop. Which tackle shop owners or managers will insult a prospective customer? Can you imagine male customers in a tackle shop insulting a young woman? They'd be banned for life!

Forgive me for being dubious...

 

[mike fox]

In 50 plus years of angling I have NEVER come across sexism or discrimination in any form. I have however come across jealousy in every form when winning/doing well in matches or competitions especially as a newcomer to a group. I fear Emma may be confusing jealousy with discrimination from other anglers. Also I fear that the AT are jumping on the band wagon here to justify themselves in supporting anti-discrimination within angling which is quite correct and the right thing to do as they must be seen to do so, especially by Sport England. However, publishing statements in this format of discrimination that may not even be there is troublesome and could backfire and deter newcomers to the sport, male or female.
I wish Emma every success in her angling activities and hope she sticks with it as undoubtedly we need more women in the sport.

 

[Louis D]

Its quite interesting to read this thread. There was a lot of stuff on FB during the lockdown about 'men helping men'. Plenty of 'I'm here if you want to talk mate'. It's almost as if people suddenly recognised that you need to tone it down sometimes and change your approach. I assume those people were genuine and wanted to help someone who obviously needed it. Good for them but, hopefully, that was not just a temporary situation.

This may have been poorly presented by AT as a sensationalist bombshell but that doesn't mean there isn't some validity to it. The point is that banter is fine when everyone's in on it. It's one thing to rip it out of your mates but you can't always see that someone needs support not banter. You don't know what they're going through or their past. I don't know Emma's situation and I expect few, if any, on here do but maybe that provides some context.

Or maybe I've just got it all wrong.

 

[Neil ofthe nene]

@Louis D Spot on in my opinion and experience. I have been bullied both at school and work, the work one also involved sexual discrimination with me being the only man in a management team otherwise all female and my boss not liking men. What may seem like banter to others can be very hurtful and used as a bullying tactic against the recipient. Seemingly harmless fun to the uninformed onlooker can strike deep into the emotions of the victim.

 

[BBear]

I don’t know how genuine the Emma case is but looking at the wider picture the fact is that the vast majority of anglers are white older men - myself included. We’re happy rocking up at a fishery, tackle shop or match straight into the usual chat and banter, comfortable in the little angling world we’ve created for ourselves.

It must be daunting for anyone outside that ‘club’ to try and join in which is why maybe we see so few female or black anglers. I don’t for one minute think that we anglers are out and out discriminatory (apart from the odd idiot) but I can see how just one misplaced comment or silly joke could be taken the wrong way by someone who is already feeling that they don’t belong.

not sure what the answer is, except I do think we all need to be as friendly and supportive as possible to anyone who shows and interest in and wants to try out our sport.

 

[chris1967]

Sorry was it just me but the article went on way too long and i only read the first paragraph and lost interest ,typical male butterfly fluttered past and i was off no attention span .

 

[Maesknoll]

The one thing we don’t know is what her attitude and approach has been. I have seen someone hounded out of match fishing, but they really didn’t do themselves any favours in their manner when they arrived on the scene and some of the shenanigans that went on on SM private messaging, email etc. It’s not easy to make a judgement when you only hear one side of the story.

 

[Lee Richards]

"I walk into a venue or a tackle shop, the room is full of male anglers and falls silent – all eyes are on me."

She is not an unattractive woman what does she thinks will happen in a male dominant environment?
If they were overtly lewd I would get it but perhaps she needs to think things through a bit more.

Tbh though I feel the same when I am in the M&S bra and pants section.

 

[Dave]

Unfortunately, I think this will have the opposite effect than intended and raise widespread concerns where there is none.
As from everyone's comments so far, including those on here and else where from other women, if there is an issue it is minor, not widescale, perhaps even not at all. If you go looking for issues then as the saying goes 'seek and you will find'.
The AT has every right to challenge the status quo but that challenge needs to be just, not based on one or two individual experiences as let's be honest everyone can read something into any situation and it can be vastly different to the next person depending on the person themselves.
Once the tabloids get hold of it angling in general could be slated and ripped apart, food for the anti's, undoing of anything the 'Trust has achieved lately, and for what?

 

[Godber]

I corrected your typo's mate