Emma Rizzo attended her first New York Islanders game when she was a few months old, nestled in a basinet in the stands of the Nassau Memorial Veterans Coliseum. Rizzo’s love for the Islanders stayed with her throughout her life and she's now using art to combine her love of the Islanders and advocacy for representation of the LGBTQIA+ community.
“I have always wanted people to be able to be seen,” Rizzo said. “I feel that LGBT fans in hockey are overshadowed, and people don’t think you can be gay and love hockey or can’t enjoy the sport and it’s such a lie. I just want to send the message that there are people like you, who enjoy the sport and cherish it just as much as everybody else. I see you, that’s my message, I see you.”
Rizzo won a contest to design a pride t-shirt that will be sold on Pride Night at UBS Arena on Jan. 16 when the Islanders host the Philadelphia Flyers. The Islanders logo centers Rizzo’s design, as six hockey sticks – all a different color of the rainbow – are behind it at an angle.
“I wanted something that showcased both my love of pride and my love of hockey, so I thought about hockey sticks and incorporated a rainbow,” Rizzo explained. “I thought the thirds logo had a sleek look. It just came together and kept adding on more ideas.”