3
Section One: The Fundamentals
A) Keywords
Exercise 1:
Briefly (in 100 words or less) define one of the keywords in the padlet (including one that you. may have added yourself).
| Intersectionality: a term that expresses how overlapping societal identities like race, gender, class, and sexuality, and how those aspects shape experiences of privilege and oppression. Specifically in sports, intersectionality can help to show how athletes face different barriers throughout their careers because of aspects of their identity. For example, athletes such as Serena Williams is often faced with racism and sexism, while other athletes who identify as transgender, often face regulation and policy changes that pose a question to the legitimacy.
|
B) Representing Race
Exercise 2: Notebook Prompt
In about 50-70 words, consider Joel Bervell’s question: why do we feel the need to extrapolate the athleticism of one Black athlete to all Black people when we do not do the same for white athletes?
Try to think of examples when this happens, making sure to reflect on your own positionality.
| This question underlines the obviousness of racial stereotyping within sports. When a Black athlete does really good in their sport, people tend to say it was because of their success to “innate” abilities, physical traits or biological traits. This can be seen in the ways in which people talk about the success of Usain Bolt and saying the his speed is linked to his genetics. In contrast, white athletes such as Tom Brady tend to praise his skill and strategy for his success over natural abilities or genetic predispositions.
|
C) Gender, Race & Sport
Exercise 3: Notebook Prompt
What are some strategies for resistance that Rajack and Joseph identify in their article as a means of pushing back against and resisting misogynoir?
| Throughout the article, Rajack and Joseph there is steady implementation of ideas to resist misogynoir by reclaiming the narratives of sports through making the environments more welcoming to diversity. The article highlights the complexity within the relationship of sports representations in the media and societal identity through the intersectionality of race, gender, and national identity. The strategies to mend these gaps also include educating audiences to ensure people are aware of stereotypes and how they are exemplified through the media. This engagement would help advocate for change and may help to make a change in policy for a more fair and anti-racist and sexist standpoint in sports media. Another strategy to be used to fight against misogynoir would be to increase representation that calls out the biases, promotes diversity, and shows support for the Black female athletes who use their platform for standing up for others like them. |
Section Two: Making Connections
A) Athlete Activism
Exercise 3: Padlet Prompt
Do athletes have a responsibility to use their platform for social change? Why or why not? Please remember to record your response in both the padlet below and in your Notebook.
|
I believe that athletes may not be obligated to use their platform for social change, however, it should be something for them to consider. I think they it should be something they talk about with their team or managers in order to determine if their stance on the current societal issues are something they want to comment on and contribute to. They should be debriefed about their influence on their audience so that they fully understand what it is they have the power to achieve through the means of what they chose to post or not. Although it may not be a part of their terms and conditions as an athlete, I think that athletes should at least consider the possibility of their influence and power they hold. They should be urged to think about the youth that is on social media and think about how they are interpreting the world around them as well as thinking about their past and what they had to fight through in order to get to where they are now. They should want it to be easier for people now to do what they did and want to show them that they paved the way for the next generation and use their platform for that. |
B) Athlete Activism & Feminism
Exercise 4: Complete the activities
Exercise 5: Notebook Prompt
What do the authors of the article call for as a way of challenging how mainstream sports journalism privileges neoliberal feminist concerns? (100 words max.)
| The article argues that mainstream sports journalism privileges neoliberalism feminist concerns that focus on empowerment and societal driven solutions as it also ignores the inequalities that are present in the issues. They call to telling the stories differently in that expanding on sports media to go beyond traditional platforms and pages. There is an emphasis on the disruption of epistemological hegemonies within sport media and research that is urging a shift to focus more on feminist voices and indulging in more critiques that apply intersectionality structures and power.
|
C) Corporate social justice
Exercise 6: Padlet Poll
| Sports leagues don’t all take the same stance on social justice matters. As mentioned in the article, some leagues are more influenced by the impact of social justice movements, however, others require more on the individuals on the teams to start a movement. I believe that as an athlete, one should hope that it shouldn’t be on them to post about the issues, but on the league managers and leaders to do so to show the support of the team as a whole. I think that everyone is justified to their own opinion or beliefs but they do not have to publicly express those beliefs and thoughts. I think that as long as the people are on the more progressive side that is working to help rather than harm, then they should not have to post online about their specific beliefs and opinions. However, in terms of the BLM movement, I do not think that athletes should be obligated to post their beliefs online but, they should still show support through their team’s platform. Similarly to Kaepernick kneeling during the anthem, I think more athletes should be making those riskier decisions in order to get a jumpstart on supporting movements in the world of social justice, including BLM.
|
Section Three: Taking a shot
Module Assignment (submit as part of notebook and separately through Blackboard mini assignment #1 portal)
In the film Remember the Titans, based on a true story of the 1971 T.C. Williams High School football team, there is evidence of tension rising as a result of integration within the school and tells the story of how the football team mends the divide through sports. Throughout the film it can be seen that the White students and the newly integrated Black students do not get along and are pinned against each other because that is what they were taught to do and how they were expected to behave. It highlights one character in particular, Julius, who is seen standing up against the racist remarks by confronting the prejudice while becoming a leader in the teams’ social life as well as their athletic careers. Julius takes a stand by refusing to tolerate racism by calling out the White teammates as he recognizes their prejudice and lack of cohesion. This is done through him telling the most respected man on the team, Gerry, that Gerry must earn his respect which is actively challenging the authority norms during that time. This leadership that Julius shows and dedication to demanding respect and being treated as an equal allows for him and Gerry to build a strong bond which is also when others on the team begin to follow suit and show everyone on the team the same respect, despite the colour of their skin. Similarly to the case study with Colin Kaepernick, when he knelt during the national anthem, others began to do so as well in solidarity to show support for those effected by police violence. Through the act of kneeling, Kaepernick was showing resistance against the norm that was set by people that were ignoring the reality of what was happening. In a similar way, Julius was doing the same when he showed resistance against the discrimination he was told he was supposed to accept. Remember the Titans shows a theme of reinforcing unity through sports and taking a stand against what is normal and making a point to change it to what is right. This is also represented through Kaepernick’s activism movement by showing that sports an serve as a way to support social justice issues. In Kaepernick’s story it was the movement against police violence, and in Remember the Titans it was Julius’ initiative that supports the social movement through sports. Overall, the film shows the importance of sports through the ways in which it can bring different groups of people together through leadership and friendship to mend divides and come together as a cohesive group.
