Disclosure: Jennifer Ingraham, a 107ist board member, also serves as a copy editor for Rose City Review. She was not involved in the creation of this piece in any way.
Last summer, a number of Portland soccer fans came forward about their experiences with the 107ist, the organization that coordinates both the Timbers Army and Rose City Riveters. The first was Milo Reed, a Black capo in the TA. In a Medium post, Reed wrote that the 107ist board had repeatedly ignored and spoken over him when he tried to weigh in on a discussion about a blog post some on social media were calling racist.
Following Reed’s post, two members of the 107ist talked with Rose City Review about their own experiences in the TA and RCR. We also spoke with the founders of Black Fires, a Black supporters group in Chicago. All four echoed Reed’s sentiment: self-proclaimed inclusivity and anti-racism isn’t enough if BIPOC don’t feel like their presence and voices are valued.
Fans called on the 107ist board to actively listen to and engage with fans of color, make the structure of the organization more accessible, and for board members to step down and create space for BIPOC to take their place. One person specifically said the board needed at least three BIPOC members before she believed they could move forward. Then-newly named 107ist President Gabby Rosas predicted that those resignations would take place in December 2020, in accordance with the regular 107ist election cycle.
Over the summer, the 107ist also formed a BIPOC committee to provide independent oversight of the 107ist and evaluate why fans of color had the experiences they did. However, all of the BIPOC committee members are also 107ist members—a requirement for any committee position within the organization.
“We were not going to solve the board’s diversity and race problem,” the committee said via email, “but we could, out of love for the community we were part of, help point out areas they needed to address change and to call them out when they failed to meet expectations.”
Since the BIPOC committee formed, it has held regular meetings to discuss race in the TA and the police presence in Providence Park, advocate for better representation within the 107ist board and committees, and create better pathways for the general community to get involved with the 107ist.
When election season came around, three of the current board members—including Rosas—were reelected to three-year terms.
“We’re seeing that as a big red flag,” Rosas said, “because we recognize that as an organization we need to be doing a better job of soliciting for new board members and making sure that everyone who’s interested knows enough about what it is to be on the board and what the organization needs and can feel comfortable running.”
The one new member, who is white, filled the seat of Ray Terrill, who had stepped down over the summer and asked that his position be filled by a person of color.
The 107ist also created a new election pathway that allows for members of the RCR and TA steering committee to each nominate a representative to a one-year term on the board and the BIPOC committee to select two candidates. The TA steering committee and BIPOC committee took advantage of this new pathway and appointed three representatives in total.
“We’re very focused on making sure that we’re listening first,” Rosas said. “And listening to not only our new board members, the two that were nominated by the BIPOC committee, but also that committee as a whole.”
However, Rosas said there’s a learning curve for new members, which makes it hard for new representatives to make an immediate impact. The board is looking to make that transition easier for members who are elected to one-year terms. Rosas specifically pointed to ensuring that one-year representatives have information early and said the board is making an active effort to prioritize those members’ central goals. “It’s creating a sense of urgency that I think we needed,” she said.
The board is also trying to lighten its workload by allocating tasks to its various committees—something that will allow members to spend less time on paperwork and more time on the initiatives they want to carry out—and expanding overall committee membership. Rosas said she hopes this will make board positions more accessible to prospective members, since up to 12 hours of work per week is a lot to ask of a volunteer position.
Rosas said breaking down those barriers and building out all the 107ist committees to encompass a wider range of ages, backgrounds, religions, and cultures can also help inform 107ist practices. “As we diversify all of our committees, we’re able to better understand who we’re representing,” she said.
The BIPOC committee also pointed to the time commitment as a barrier to soliciting engagement. “BIPOC are already carrying the burden of this in our daily personal lives,” it said, in the form of explaining racial bias or navigating systemic racism within work, school, or community spaces.
“We are volunteering our time and knowledge to ensure the 107ist is a more inclusive organization where all members’ voices are heard and respected,” the committee said.
The BIPOC committee said COVID-19 also presents a barrier to outreach; the 107ist, TA, and RCR are primarily united by a love for Portland professional soccer, which makes engagement more difficult when everything is virtual. On top of that, many members generally have less free time, as they’re prioritizing safety and job security during the pandemic.
Still, the committee has created a pathway to anonymously present member grievances to the board by acting as a mediating body. Rosas said the 107ist is getting different feedback now that the BIPOC committee exists, although neither she nor the committee wanted to expand on the specifics of these complaints due to privacy concerns.
The BIPOC committee is also working to create a more formalized grievance process and engage with members. Due to the volunteer nature of 107ist positions, the committee said everything moves a little slower than a regular, paid workplace, but it expects to have more updates later in the year.
When asked about how it is dividing its focus between individual grievances, structural issues, and fostering pathways for representation within the 107ist, the BIPOC committee said it was “an ongoing discussion” and that more information would be available at a later date.
Rosas said trying to enact change while the BIPOC committee is still working to establish itself has added another layer of difficulty to enacting change within the 107ist. “I think what some people were expecting—and some people on the board were expecting—was that the BIPOC committee would just tell us what to do,” she said.
To Rosas, it’s been a balance of ensuring the 107ist is soliciting feedback from those outside the board, including other organizations, and taking responsibility to act on its own. The board recognizes that the autonomy of its position comes with responsibility. “We can’t wait for the BIPOC community, we can’t wait for any underrepresented community to come up with the words to tell us, ‘We’re not represented’,” she said. “We as a board, we as a leadership group have to figure out how we can represent our members without them telling us.”
Currently, the board is focusing on its annual general meeting for members—to be held at the end of February or early March. Rosas said that’s when the 107ist will share more detailed plans for its 2021 initiatives.
“We are not dropping any of our focus from last year,” she said, “but increasing the ways we want to make meaningful impact with our members and in our communities.”
