Remembering Alice Hoagland, the godmother of gay rugby
Alice Hoagland is a beloved figure and a legend within the international gay rugby circuit. But how did a former flight attendant from California gain such acclaim?
GCN set out to explore her legacy, and uncover the heartbreaking yet powerful story behind her rise to LGBTQ+ icon status.The root of her activism followed her son Mark Bingham’s untimely death as he was a passenger on United Flight 93 during the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
When Bingham realised that the plane had been hijacked, he called his mother and told her he loved her, before sadly dying in the tragedy aged just 31.Speaking to Iowa City Press-Citizen in 2019, Hoagland remembered: “I only got three minutes with him and when I tried to call back, I couldn’t get through […] As a flight attendant for 20 years, I wanted to tell him to sit down and don’t draw attention to yourself.”Bingham did just the opposite.
The 6 foot 5, 220-pound man fought back against the attackers, and is hailed as one of the heroes who caused the plane to divert and crash in rural Pennsylvania, rather than into its intended target assumed to be the U.S.
