Shaunagh Brown - You have to choose your words carefully
England rugby star Shaunagh Brown does not see barriers – whether that is in life or on the field.
A qualified gas engineer, she has also worked as a commercial diver and for Kent Fire and Rescue but it is in sport where she really stands out, having been brought up to believe anything is possible.
She explained: “My mum was a single parent with three kids and we didn’t have a lot of money. There were free activities during the summer holidays when Mum was at work and I wanted to keep up with my boy cousins.
“I really enjoyed beating them at school and where maybe other people see a barrier, my mum said that if you want to do something just go and do it. As long as it's free and safe, go and do it.”
Shaunagh’s first sporting dream was to compete at the Commonwealth Games and the Olympic Games as an athlete, having joined Blackheath and Bromley Harriers at a young age.
She competed in the Hammer at the 2014 Commonwealth Games and later boxed professionally and participated in Strongwoman competitions before starting to play rugby at the tender age of 25.
Within two years she had made her England debut and has been part of the team that won three Women’s Six Nations titles in a row and dominated New Zealand in this summer’s internationals as well as helping Harlequins to secure their first Premier 15s title last season.
But it is how she has used her profile for greater societal good that has seen Shaunagh stand out as a role model on and off the field.
Having grown up in South London, it was when her family moved to Kent that she realised that cultural and racial diversity didn’t exist everywhere.
“There was a mixture of people of colours of personality types, educational needs… just so many different people everywhere all of the time,” Shaunagh explains.
“That was my normal though I was still a bit different as I was always the only girl playing football, the only girl wanting to do the races.
“Then when I came to Gillingham and I realised how much of this country is still very much in its own bubble. It'll be like ‘You're all right because you do our nation proud your but them next door, you’re not like them!’ I struggled with that growing up.”
It was the dramatic and tragic death of George Floyd and the growth of the Black Lives Matter movement that inspired Shaunagh to use her profile to inspire and educate others.
Shaunagh added: “I thought to myself, if you looked at my Instagram and took away the rugby pictures, what do I stand for?
“It’s OK if you want to just be a sportsperson. You don't have to have another reason to exist, you don't have to use your platform, but I wanted to.
“I've always known that women are suppressed, that black people are suppressed and put into boxes. You're a woman, you go to school, you should be wearing a skirt or a dress and you shouldn't be playing football.
“You're black, you should be thinking about being a security guard or maybe a nurse, but there's no chance you're going to be a doctor or lawyer. So it's that constant reminder from society.
“And I knew that was wrong. I always knew that was wrong. So it was about me putting it out there and helping other people empower themselves to speak up and not get shot down.
“Society is telling people that this job is not for you because you only see white men on the posters or the language used in a job advert is not aimed at you.
“So I got that sense of moral purpose, firstly on my own platforms and eventually people then started coming to me to discuss discrimination in sport and how you get treated as a woman, as a black person, as another.
“I use sarcasm and entertainment and you have to choose your words carefully and specifically because how you get a message across is important, learning what words do for you.
“I don't want to isolate people and I'm not one to call people out and shout at them and say ‘that's a disgrace’ because a lot of the time, it's not meant maliciously, it's just almost what society has done to our brains.”
She is a key figure in the Rugby Football Union (RFU)’s ‘Rugby Against Racism’ campaign and was selected as one of Premiership Rugby’s Sporting Equals Leaderboard project which is designed to influence equality, diversity, and inclusion in the boardrooms of sport.
“You can make simple changes to include more people at an event by changing the music from just everyday pop music to putting a bit of hip hop in, or reggae, Bhangra or Afrobeats.
“I had someone message me and she said runs major events. She'd never thought about that and how easy would be for her to change that and how much of a difference it would make to so many.
“There is a huge way to go, but a few things are going in the right direction. I really appreciate the direct messages from parents and sometimes from children or teachers thanking me for helping them to rethink how they think about this subject.”
Next year promises more chances for glory on the field, with England strong contenders for both the Six Nations again and the Rugby World Cup in New Zealand, which was postponed this year due to Covid-19.
Shaunagh has no plans to hold back if the opportunity arises. She said: “If I go to the World Cup, there's absolutely no chance I will hold back.
“I'll probably go a bit harder with it because the platform becomes bigger and what makes me a good person and a good rugby player is me.
“Sport has that ability to bring people together and to break down barriers and I have seen the positivity that sport can bring.
“Even now I almost enjoy enabling other people to play more. I am just one person, but if I can enable 200 girls to play, for me that's more powerful than just me playing.”
To find out more about Shaunagh, please click HERE