Right: Alan Joyce, the openly-gay CEO of Qantas, was criticised by Margaret Court for adding his name to a list of company heads who declared their firms' policies to be non-discriminatory
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Arguments in favour of renaming the Margaret Court Arena
1. Margaret Court has an established history of intolerance toward homosexuals
Critics of Margaret Court point to her long record of public pronouncements against homosexuality. The most recent Change-org petition calling for a renaming of the Margaret Court Arena states, 'It is as a nation that we stand up to this sort of bigotry and say enough is enough. We will not have an international venue that gets worldwide attention named after someone who is so narrow minded.'
As an instance of Margaret Court's supposed bigotry, critics cite an interview published in Western Australia in 2011 in which Margaret Court stated, 'There is no reason to put forward alternative, unhealthy, unnatural unions as some form of substitute. To dismantle this sole definition of marriage and try to legitimize what God calls abominable sexual practices that include sodomy, reveals our ignorance as to the ills that come when society is forced to accept law that violates their very own God-given nature of what is right and what is wrong.'
Supporters of homosexual rights object to the language Court uses here, referring to homosexuality as 'unhealthy' and 'unnatural' and promoting the belief that from a Christian perspective it is 'abominable'.
The use of the word 'sodomy' is particularly offensive as it derives from a Christian context within which homosexuality was condemned as sinful and often non-consensual.
Brisbane LGBTIQ Action Group convenor Phil Browne has stated, 'The word sodomy promotes stigma, prejudice and discrimination and society has moved on and recognised that all people are worthy of respect, regardless of what they may or may not do legally in the privacy of their own bedroom.
It's a word that has been demonised, as a weapon to promote intolerance against gay people.'
In 2013 a letter from Margaret Court was published in The Western Australian newspaper in which Court also criticised the family circumstances of Australian tennis player Casey Dellacqua, who lives in a lesbian relationship and had recently announced the birth of a son.
Margaret Court wrote, 'It is with sadness that I see that this baby has seemingly been deprived of his father.
If we continue to dismantle the traditional family unit as old fashioned, archaic and no longer even necessary or relevant, we will create a fatherless generation...
I simply want to champion the rights of the family over the rights of the individual to engineer social norms and produce children into their relationships.'
Supporters of homosexuality see Margaret Court's remarks as an attack on the legitimacy of homosexual families and the right of same sex couples to rear children.
2. Margaret Court's views have made the arena bearing her name a focus of division
Opponents of the Margaret Court Arena retaining that name point to the divisiveness of the views the former tennis champion has expressed. Margaret Court's criticisms of homosexuality have led to numerous calls for boycotts or demonstrations focused on the arena which bears her name.
In an opinion piece, published in The Music, Maxim Boon noted, 'Several commentators responding to Court's Qantas boycott have suggested a response in kind from pro-marriage equality promoters and artists, by withdrawing from appearances at the Margaret Court Arena until its name is altered.'
Boon continued, 'And if Court really is so resolute in her narrow-mindedness, she would surely welcome such sanctions. After all, why would she want associations with a venue tainted by a community she clearly deems sub-human? By refusing to be tacitly complicit in Court's hate, artists can stand with their fans in solidarity in a way that Court, and others like her, cannot ignore.'
By using her celebrity to draw attention to her views, Court's critics argue, the former tennis champion has tainted that celebrity and the venue memorialising it for those who find her views objectionable. Thus Court's publicly declared views make the stadium bearing her name a focus for those who wish to protest against Court's declared beliefs.
On January 11, 2012, The Star Observer reported that a new Facebook group was calling for Australian Open fans to show their pride by covering Margaret Court Arena in rainbow flags.
The social media campaign, titled 'Rainbow Flags over Margaret Court Arena', was set up in response to the anti-homosexual comments Margaret Court made in 2011.
Critics of the current name of the arena argue that Margaret Court's public comments have made the arena a cause of division and protest and that the name should therefore be changed.
3. Margaret Court's attitudes are especially harmful to young homosexuals
It has been claimed that athletes have a special position as role models within Australian society and thus their declared views can have a powerful impact on young Australians who look up to them.
Australian doubles champion Rennae Stubbs, who announced her homosexuality publicly in 2006, has indicated that she finds Margaret Court's homophobic comments particularly hurtful.
Stubbs has stated, 'As a young Australian tennis player, I aspired to be like Margaret Court. This is why it has been very difficult to understand her words of hate directed towards homosexuals. It is unfortunate that someone with her stature has chosen to propagate discrimination...'
In 2009, Margaret Court declared the Martina Navratilova was a poor role model to young people because of her homosexuality. Court's stance met with a great deal of criticism. One opponent posting a comment on Talk Tennis at Tennis Warehouse stated, 'Margaret Court is as homophobic now as she ever was. As a gay person myself I think she is the bad role model, preaching hatred against people who were just born a certain way. Homophobia is still a huge issue in the world, especially in sports, and spiteful attitudes such as hers are the reason why gay athletes (especially men) are petrified of coming out and forced to live a lie.'
A 2012 Change.org petition to have the Margaret Court Arena renamed stated, 'Margaret Court was a fantastic tennis player, however as an evangelical Christian minister she has been using her profile to spread homophobia and hatred. In a country where we know 30% of same-sex attracted teens will attempt suicide and acts of serious self-harm (more than twice the 14.5% of straight teens) we ask that Tennis Australia withdraw their implicit support of Ms Court's media campaign against homosexuals.'
Referring specifically to the effect of Margaret Court's opposition to homosexuality on young people, Christos Tsiolkas, the author of The Slap, stated in January 2012, 'I don't know whether she is a mother or a grandmother but she would be an aunt or godmother. Her words could be hurting a niece or a nephew or a godchild who is trying to deal with their sexuality right now.
Her comments would also be hurting and confusing many young people, especially sportspeople, who want to look up to her as a source of inspiration and pride. That's a mean-spirited betrayal.'
4. A majority of Australians do not endorse Margaret Court's views which are not in accord with the values Australian sport seeks to promote
Opponents of Margaret Court's views in relation to homosexuality argue that it is inappropriate to have a national stadium bearing the name of someone whose attitudes are so out of step with those of the majority of Australians and with those Australian sport seeks to exemplify.
When Margaret Court appeared on Channel Ten's current affairs program, The Project, on Friday May 26, host Waleed Aly stated, '62-64 per cent of Australians are in favour of this [same-sex marriage], so you can have your view but you can't change those facts.'
Critics have argued that Margaret Court has set herself in opposition to widespread popular support for sexual tolerance and inclusion. It has further been argued that many of Australia's most prominent sporting competitions, including Tennis Australia, have openly adopted a policy of inclusion, seeking to make players from all backgrounds and sexual orientations feel welcome within their sports.
On May 26, 2017, The Sydney Morning Herald published a comment by Peter FitzSimons in which he stated, 'Tennis is an inclusive game, and ever more inclusive in the 21st century. Does Melbourne Park really want to have an arena named after someone who stands so firmly against such inclusiveness, who is becoming a byword for bigot?'
On May 26, 2017, both Tennis Australia and Margaret Court Arena management issued statements distancing themselves from anti-homosexual comments made by Margaret Court.
The Tennis Australia statement reads, 'As a legend of the sport, we respect Margaret Court's achievements in tennis and her unmatched playing record. Her personal views are her own, and do not align with Tennis Australia's values of equality, inclusion and diversity.'
Management for Margaret Court Arena, named after Court, issued the statement: 'Melbourne and Olympic Parks does not support Margaret Court's comments and we remain an organisation committed to embracing equality, diversity and inclusion; from our fans to our colleagues who deliver the events that people love to attend.'
The preamble to the most recent Change-org petition calling for the renaming of the Margaret Court Arena states, 'Regardless of personal convictions, Ms Court should not have her name on a venue that is home to people of all races, gender and sexual persuasion if she personally does not share the views of equality that her venue provides for.'
Opponents of the stadium retaining Margaret Court's name argue that anyone so out of touch with popular sentiment that the management of the stadium bearing her name has to disassociate the venue from her opinions is not a suitable person to commemorate in this way.
5. There are more appropriate people for whom to name the stadium
Opponents of the Margaret Court Arena retaining this name argue there are other notable Australian women tennis players whose names could be given to the stadium.
The name most commonly put forward is that of Evonne Cawley.
Evonne Goolagong Cawley AO, MBE is an Australian former World No. 1 female tennis player. She was one of the world's leading players in the 1970s and early 1980s, during which she won 14 Grand Slam titles: seven in singles (four at the Australian Open, two at Wimbledon and one at the French Open), six in women's doubles, and one in mixed doubles.
Goolagong Cawley is 12th on the list of all-time singles grand slam winners level with Venus Williams and ended her career with 82 singles titles.
One of the features of Cawley's success that makes her attractive to many Australians is that she is the only Indigenous tennis player to have succeeded in international tennis. In April 2016 Goolagong Cawley was awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of South Australia in recognition of her distinguished service to the community.
Sydney Morning Herald sports commentator Peter Fitzsimons has stated, 'I know of no finer person, no more generous and inclusive than Evonne Goolagong-Cawley. I run into her about once a year in airports around Australia and she is always on her way to do something to help someone. How 'bout the Evonne Goolagong Arena, as a name that tennis can be proud to put up in lights?'
On March 26, 2017, Mike Lynch commenting on Beyond the Game similarly remarked, 'Evonne Goolagong-Cawley has done phenomenal things for tennis and for our nation as a whole. It would be a great tribute to have a stadium named after her.'
International women's tennis champion, Martina Navratilova, has also stated, 'Evonne Goolagong Cawley Arena is a mouthful, but it gets my vote - for all the right reasons.'