I’m not one to talk about political or hot-button issues because I write about a sport, and not about government, racism, policing, or oppression.

But … I have seen bad examples of all of those things and despite the bubble I live in, I do once in a while look outside of it.

And I am wondering ... what can we, as a rugby community, do as cities are put to the torch, as people turn on each other, as the grieving cry with rage at the injustices we’ve seen far too often? 

I'd say that it’s not enough to listen. It’s not enough to brag about rugby’s diversity. It’s not enough to tweet. We should do something. Something positive.

(I know many of you do stuff like this—feel free to contact us to tell us what it is.)

Every Rugby Team Has The Same Qualities

Every rugby team is a group of physically fit, intelligent, and unified people. Young or old, women or men, from all over the world or just from your hometown, we are all similar in that way. You can do something with that. Get together (as soon as you are allowed), and clean up your town. Someone’s restaurant or clothing store was destroyed or looted? Help them rebuild.

(A quick note—for those of you saying businesses have insurance and can rebuild a) waiting weeks or months for coverage when you have no income isn’t exactly being covered and b) according to various sources I have read and heard, insurance policies don’t cover damage from civil unrest … so, no, those businesses won’t be OK, unless we help them.)

Every month your rugby team should be building a ramp for an elderly citizen who now needs a wheelchair and can’t get into his house, or going down to the river in your city and picking up all the garbage. You can put boards on windows of looted businesses. You can leverage your expertise. Who’s a builder? Who repairs cars? Who can give someone a ride to dialysis? 

What if your team went down to the worst part of your town and pulled weeds, fixed the landscaping, cleaned up the stairwells, and took your club T-shirts to all the kids? What if you did that again three weeks later? What if you did it 15 times a year?

What if you helped get all the people at a community center for the elderly out to one of your games and then visited with those people afterward? And then you did it again?  

What if you took your all-Caucasian rugby team to the African-American or all-Hispanic part of town and just said “Hi.” Or marched with them. Or supported their community event?

We Have The Power

I have been spending a lot of time studying American rugby stats, talking to people angry at USA Rugby, and talking to people frustrated because they can’t play.

OK, you can’t play. But you can do something. If there truly are 120,000 registered rugby players in the USA, then that’s 120,000 people who are fit, strong, tenacious, and team-oriented. Can we leverage that work force to help our communities—not just for show, and not just once, but even when no one is looking, and always?

What would happen? You’d reach some kids in low-income housing who might come watch you play, or play for you. You’d garner the respect of the business community and the city because you’re not asking for anything, you’re just helping. You’d show that we’re more than just talkers when it comes to supporting undervalued communities.

Get together. Clean it, repair it, lift it up. That's rugby too.