Young girl in Saskatchewan kicked out of her co-ed hockey league over dressing room concerns

A 12-year-old girl in Saskatchewan is on the receiving end of an undeserving permanent release from her hometown hockey league, due to fear of being put in a "compromising situation", with the vast majority of her co-ed team being young males.

The Dalmeny Minor Hockey Association released young Berkley Trayhorne following a dispute between the organization and Trayhorne's parents, Rod and Laurelea, that got very messy and included, a human rights complaint, allegations of misogyny, vulgar language and even legal action.

Board members ruled on the case with the following factors being considered:

"It's an effort to protect males or females from anything that could be said or mistaken in the dressing room...[assault] might be an extreme case but it could be a possibility, right?" said Kyle Rathgeber, president of the DMHA, adding that he felt a coach or parent would have to be in the room at all times and he couldn't guarantee that would be the case. "So again you're just trying to protect everyone from things that could happen."

Pee-Wee U13, the level that Trayhorne was entering, has a policy in place, through Hockey Canada, where co-ed dressing room rules change, mandating that boys and girls age 11 and older are forced to dress separately, so for much of her time, Berkley was forced to dress in hallways, closets or restrooms. These situations were obviously no more ideal than having young boys and girls dressing together in the same dressing room.

"We've had situations where grown men have just walked in on her [while she's getting dressed] because she's not in a dressing room — it's a utility closet," said Berkley's father, Rod.

Berkley had eventually just begun wearing sports/performance under-gear to the rinks and dressing in the hallway outside of her team's dressing room, where she was at least in the same proximity as her team and could still listen in/be a part of the locker room banter before and after games. That situation also began to weigh on Berkley, as she began to feel alienated from her teammates.

"I didn't really want to play anymore because, like, that's mainly the whole part that I really wanted to be there was to have fun, and me sitting by myself isn't that fun," she said.

When COVID-19 hit and youth sports protocols began to change, Berkley and her parents felt that the situation would improve, given the fact that ALL players had to arrive fully geared up, aside from skates, helmet and gloves.

"We felt that finally she would be fully welcomed as part of the team and just walk right in as an equal," said Berkley's mother, Laurelea.

Yet, despite team staff and volunteers approving of Berkley being able to enter the dressing room before the games with the rest of the players to lace up their skates and put on their gloves and helmets, a group of board members stood at the door and prevented Berkley from joining her teammates in the room.

"She was humiliated," said Laurelea. "They made her feel that she was not welcome. What message does that send to a young girl? What message does that send to the boys who are watching?"

"She's just a little girl," said Berkley's father. "I was angry. I was upset. I cried."

According to Berkley, she's very confused why a group of adults have been unable to find a solution to this problem. You'd figure that board members and volunteers would be focused on making the game MORE inclusive.. not less inclusive.

Berkley's parents plan to continue to fight the decision in an attempt to break down barriers that the league may set up to prevent any other young females from pursuing co-ed hockey opportunities.

To see the full story, click the link in the tweet below.

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