As one of the most diverse sports leagues in the UK, the British Basketball League are proud to support Black History Month (BHM).
During the month of October, we will be sharing stories from members of the Black community across our Leagues in celebration and recognition of Black history.
In the second of our interviews surrounding Black History Month, we were able to sit down with Dominique Allen, operations manager of the Manchester Giants and former Women’s player, to talk about the importance of Black History Month.
Awareness
Having been the Operations Manager of the Manchester Giants for just over a year, Dominique Allen spent the earlier part of her basketball career as an incredibly decorated player.
However, being the only Black woman in her role in the League, Allen has started to expect more out of herself to raise awareness for Black History:
“Black History Month has highlighted to me that I need to use my position to do more for the Black community. I’m in a very privileged position with my role, and I’m going to be doing more.
“I’ve tried to create opportunities for young Black people who want to work on game days, so I’ve been working with schools, universities, charities, and community groups to get as many people involved as possible.”
Dominique’s representation in the League also means a lot to her, showing that the League is starting to provide more opportunities in other roles and hopefully will expand further.
Representation
Allen is currently the only Black female Operations Manager in the League. With her former career as a star-studded player representing Great Britain, as well as the likes of playing across Europe, the transition to the Front Office of a team wasn’t expected from herself. However, opportunities have started to arise for women in the Black community across the League.
“This year, I’ve seen more growth than ever. You have people like Azania Stewart and Paige Robinson who have got all jobs within the league after playing, and before this year, it was unheard of.
“It’s a step in the right direction in giving us a platform. I think we need to continue to do more of that because it wasn’t done in the past. Now, it’s incredible. It was something I thought I could only do in America, but to be able to do it here is amazing.
“I think a lot of young kids can see this and think that these opportunities are here for us.”
Saluting Our Sisters
This year’s Black History Month centres around “saluting our sisters”. The idea is to empower and spread awareness and acknowledge the women in the black community and what they have done to progress over the decades.
Dominique, outside of herself, also believes her entire life has been surrounded by strong women of the Black community, including mentors, friends, and family members.
“I’m lucky to be surrounded by a lot of strong Black females. Rheanne Bailey, who was the Operations Manager for the women’s team, is someone that I lean on for advice all the time. I also have a really close friend in Joanne Fidler, who has her own mental health charity, and my sister, Whitney, who is a new mother and family social worker.
“They’re all an incredible support system for me, and I look up to them and try and be more like them every single day.”