When fans use their passion for clubs to protest injustices in the world around them, it reminds us that fandom is more than passive media consumption. Whether they help bring down an administrator, demonstrate against their club owner or stand up for their favorite players, these stories remind us that fans are powerful agents of change in our sport and beyond.
As part of the civil rights movement, Black fans turned their fandom into a weapon to fight against Jim Crow laws and segregation. The success of this type of fan activism is rooted in its ability to transform existing social and cultural structures.
Fan activism is defined by scholar Henry Jenkins as “forms of civic engagement and political participation that emerge from within fan culture itself.” It enables new points of entry into civic life, linking civic action to the experiences and interests of fans (Jenkins, 2006).
For example, when covering protests, reporters can highlight the purpose of the demonstration and share information about the changes the demonstrators are calling for. When reporting on a person who is part of the protest, it’s also important to share details about their personality, hobbies and family in order to humanize them.
Fan activist groups like IC and HPA draw heavily from preexisting communities as their recruitment base, but they create a new sense of community that is broader than previous community configurations. By leveraging the power of their shared experience with fandom, both groups can attract and retain young people.