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Rainbow GAA gloves will promote LGBT+ rights

GAA players are being urged to support a new student campaign designed to promote LGBT rights.

Share the gLove has been launched by members of the union NUS-USI and will involve players wearing rainbow GAA gloves.

The glove displays part of the rainbow flag, adopted by the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) community.

NUS-USI said research showed that depression affects LGBT people at higher rates than the heterosexual population.

It is hoped that the initiative could help improve wellbeing. Profits from the sale of the gloves will go to two charities - Aware NI and the Rainbow Project.

Ruairí Mooney, who helped create the initiative and plays Gaelic football for Eoghan Rua in Coleraine, said it was hoped everyone would feel accepted into the GAA community.

"The Out in Sport research carried out by NUS, examining LGBT students' experiences of all sports, showed that only around a third of LGBT students agreed or strongly agreed that equality policies on all sports were visible at their institution," he said.

"In addition to promoting LGBT+ rights through this work, we will also be promoting mental well-being.

"We want to see as many GAA players, clubs and counties buying the gloves as possible, and the initiative will also help raise money for the Rainbow Project and Aware NI. Each charity will receive 50 per cent of the profit made from this initiative."

Conor Loughran, LGBT officer for NUS-USI, said Share the gLove was a very positive initiative "which we hope will capture the imagination of the Gaelic sports world and wider society too".