Fonds F0036 - Cabbagetown Group Softball League fonds

The Cabbagetown Group Softball League (CGSL) was officially founded in 1977 by a group of baseball enthusiasts who had gathered to play in an informal fashion at the Riverdale baseball diamond since 1975. They organized with the mandate to provide an opportunity for members of the gay community and their supporters to play softball in a competitive and open atmosphere, free from discrimination on the basis of age, race, physical ability and sexual orientation. For this reason, the founding members wanted the league to be managed by the members themselves and to be free from commercial sponsorship which might lead to valuing of athletic skill over free participation. It was also a founding ideal that the league would have no political affiliation. The league originally comprised four teams and followed the rules published by the Canadian Amateur Softball Association (Softball Canada). In 1978, the league seems to have been briefly known as the “Cabbagetown Professional Group Softball League”. In that same year, the number of teams increased to eight and the CGSL held the first Canada Cup tournament, hosting teams from New York and Milwaukee. The Canada Cup became an annual tournament held every July, with teams from across Canada and the United States taking part. In 1979, the league’s first constitution was published, which stipulated that any changes had to be ratified by a majority vote of two-thirds of its members. In 1980, the constitution was challenged by some members who proposed making the league more competitive. The proposition failed to win sufficient support and a number of members left to found the Riverdale Softball League (RSL). That year, the CGSL was a founding member of the North American Gay Alliance, later known as the North American Gay Amateur Athletic Alliance (NAGAAA), which qualified the league to take part in the annual Gay World Series organized under their aegis. The CGSL was elected to host the 5th annual Gay World Series in Toronto in August of 1981, better known as “Series V”. That year, they began following the rules of the American Softball Association to facilitate cross-border participation at tournaments. In 1982 the league voted to allow commercial sponsorship of teams due to the rising costs of tournament organization. In 1983 the RSL disbanded and its members joined the CGSL. Shortly thereafter, in order to accommodate the varying wishes of members, two tiers of teams were created, one recreational and the other competitive. By the late 1990s, there was a separate women’s division in the league. In 2000, the CGSL hosted Gay World Series in Toronto, better known as “Series 2000”. In addition to playing softball, the league organizes annual events, including awards banquets and social gatherings. The league is also active in charity fundraising. The CGSL hosts an annual Christmas party where donations of cash and toys are collected to be distributed through The 519 Church Street Community Centre.