da Luz is Playing for Pride and the Human Rights Campaign
Here at My Yute Soccer, we envision communities embracing differences through soccer. While I'm especially proud of these 10 years providing free soccer camps for kids, it's an entirely different sense of pride when I learn that my own nephew is not only raising funds for the Human Rights Campaign, but he has galvanized others to do so as well.
As a professional soccer player in North Carolina, he is using his platform for social impact supporting the Human Rights Campaign, an organization that fights for LGBTQ rights and equality across the country. In an article written by Gay For Soccer,
While acknowledging that issues and discrimination do exist in places, da Luz said he was sick of the negativity around his state and wanted to show that the good outweighs the bad there. That he saw plenty of people doing cool things every day to benefit their communities and causes in which they believed.
In the founding articles for My Yute Soccer, we agreed as a team to "provide free soccer camps, educate youth in the sport of soccer, and promote awareness of socio-cultural differences for the general public." I am proud to have this opportunity to share, on behalf of My Yute Soccer, my nephew's message:
I want to create a community of people united behind a worthy cause. Donating money is good and necessary, but I also want to help shape the message that the soccer community, and the sporting community in general, are open and welcoming and diverse and very awesome.
Since its inception in the first week of April, the Playing for Pride roster has grown significantly to 28 players from across leagues and continents. (see complete roster below)
To hear from da Luz himself, he follows NWSL MVP and U.S. National team player Lynn Williams on this podcast from the Inverted Triangle, at minute 50 (and digresses to a conversation about Star Wars at 1:07, btw). Or, listen to this interview starting at minute 30 on Howler's Dummy Podcast, "Interviews with Smart Soccer People," hosted by George Quraishi.
If you would like to support and join professional soccer players across the country who are raising money for the Human Rights Campaign throughout the 2017 season, go to https://www.crowdrise.com/playing-for-pride
Current Roster, Playing for Pride
NWSL
Sam Mewis - NC Courage and USWNT
McCall Zerboni - NC Courage
Jess McDonald - NC Courage
Lynn Williams - NC Courage and USWNT
Joanna Lohman - Washington Spirit
Katie Stengel - Washington Spirit
Kristie Mewis - Washington Spirit
Stephanie McCaffrey - Chicago Red Stars
MLS
Sam Cronin - Minnesota United FC
Ike Opara - Sporting KC
Collin Martin - Minnesota United FC
Eric Miller - Colorado Rapids
USL
Tarek Morad - Louisville City FC
Niall McCabe - Louisville City FC
Aodhan Quinn - FC Cincinnati
Matt Bahner - FC Cincinnati
Enrique Montano - Sacramento Republic FC
Matt Watson - Phoenix Rising FC
NASL
Connor Tobin - North Carolina FC
Matt Fondy - North Carolina FC
Steven Miller - North Carolina FC
Brian Shriver - North Carolina FC
George Marks - North Carolina FC
Austin da Luz - North Carolina FC
Paul Black - North Carolina FC
Danny Cruz - San Francisco Deltas
Andrew Lubahn - San Francisco Deltas
INTERNATIONAL
Jamie Dell - IFK Kumla