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1 Chapter One: Sports Feminism

Section One: The Fundamentals

A) What do we know about sport? What are common assumptions we make about sport and society? 

Exercise 1: Before we go any further, I want you to take a moment and complete the phrases below:
Sport builds character
Sport provides opportunities for social mobility
Sport encourages teamwork and unity
Sport reflects values and social…
Sport transcends politics
Sport speaks a universal language
Sport is a measure of politics
While these statements might be true on one level, on another, they do not align with many people’s experience of sport, which brings us to our first class discussion forum.
 Exercise 2: Padlet response
 Speculate on why some of the statements/assumptions above might be untrue for some people or from a certain perspective. Is there anything your peers noted that surprised you? Comment on this as well.
 [type below or paste in a screenshot of your padlet participation] 
Sports can promote teamwork and unity by fostering collaboration, trust, and a sensed of shared purpose. In team sports, players often work together in reaching for a common goal. However, sports do not always promote teamwork and unity for everyone because of certain issues. For Example, some player may feel left out due to favoritism, skill differences, or biases based on race. In competitive environments, the focus on winning can cause arguments or selfish behavior instead of working together. Also poor coaching can also make players feel unsupported or unimportant, which harms teamwork.

Exercise 3: Notebook prompt

What are some other metanarratives about sport that you are familiar with? Find an image or video clip or draw something yourself that captures this idea…

So what? Why does any of this matter?  Does it matter? As something we grow up with – live with – play through – we don’t often interrogate the meanings of sport, and perhaps we don’t want to.

But being aware of these assumptions and metanarratives is especially important, I would argue, because of the centrality of sport to our everyday lives, the role that sport plays in shaping our childhood and worldviews and….. [finish that thought] 

Some other metanarratives about are: sport change your life and sports are for boys.

These metanarratives matter because they shape our experiences and influence how we think about things like fairness, identity, and inclusion. By questioning the narratives we can uncover biases like why certain groups face barriers in sports or why some are seen as more natural athletes. This matter because sports aren’t just games they impact how we live, work and form relationship with others.

 

 

 

B) What is social justice?

Exercise 4: Padlet Prompt 

Think back to the last section and try to look at some of the ideas we discussed differently. How might sport and social justice actually co-exist?

Record any images, video clips, or gifs you added to the padlet and identify a point of intersection between sport and social justice (can be an issue or a barrier or a debate or something you would like to explore in more depth in this course) . Screenshot or paste in your response below.

One important way sports and social justice connect, based on John Lewis’s definition, is unequal access to sports. Lewis says social justice is about making sure everyone is treated fairly, and that systems of oppression are removed. In sports, this means making sure all people no matter their race, gender, income, or background have the same chances to participate and succeed. Right now, many groups face barriers to playing sports, like not having enough money, access to good facilities, or being held back by stereotypes. These barriers are unfair and go against the idea of social justice. To create a fairer sports world, we need to break down these barriers so that everyone can participate and enjoy the benefits of sports. This helps make sports a place for fairness and equality, just like John Lewis envisioned.

 

 

 

 

C) Social Justice Reading 

A major philosopher of social justice. (last name)(5)RAWLS
A central principle of social justice that means “giving people what is due to them” a fair share DISTRIBUTIVE
An often unintended consequence of speaking of or about individuals and groups “experiencing inequality, marginalisation, and/or oppression” (p. 25).(8)OTHERING
Social justice involves both the burdens and benefits of membership in society(8)- BENEFITS
Down
One of three principles of social justice (associated with utility)(7)- WELFARE
Rawls felt that each person should have an equal right to the most extensive total system of equal basic ___________”(9)- LIBERTIES
Sport may contribute to social justice through promoting _________, education, employment…” (23)(6)HEALTH

D) KINESIOLOGY AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

Exercise 5: 

Social justice is a difficult concept to identify because of its:

conflation with other concerns like multicultural education, critical pedagogy, postmodernism, post colonialism, and queer theory
How does mainstream discourse construct marginalized populations as “being-at-risk” for health and fitness issues?
*It suggests they lack the capacity for self-management skills.
*It suggests they lack the capacity for self-compliance in health and physical education.
*It suggests they lack the capacity for self-discipline.
*Healthism constructs members of marginalized populations as , not responsible citizens, and as “problem to be ” and blamed when government-mandated programs fail to meet their .
*According to the authors of this article, by making health and fitness a matter of personal responsibility, individual choice, and moralized practices, healthism obscures and glosses over issues of privilege, discrimination
, and social inequalities.

Exercise 6:

What are the implications of bodies-at-risk discourse and the refusal to understand the health gap from a social justice perspective, according to the authors of this article?

The authors argue that the “bodies-at-risk” approach, which sees marginalized groups as problems to be fixed, has serious consequences. It paints certain groups (like people of color, those in poverty, and those with disabilities) as unhealthy or deficient, ignoring the deeper reasons behind their health struggles. This approach focuses on their health problems as personal issues instead of addressing the bigger social and economic factors causing these disparities. When we refuse to look at health gaps through a social justice lens, we miss the opportunity to fix the root causes of inequality, like racism, poverty, and privilege. Instead, we continue to blame individuals, which ignores the impact of society’s structures. The authors also point out that in a capitalist society, health is treated like a product to be bought and sold, putting pressure on people to take personal responsibility for their health, without considering the broader issues that influence it.

Section Two: Sport Feminism

Exercise 7: Notebook Prompt

What is feminism?  What does it mean to you? Choose one of the images below and explain how it captures your understanding of feminism (or find one that does speak to you and paste this into your pressbook with an explanation of why it matters to you.

  1. Liberal Sports Feminism: This view believes that sport is good for women and girls, and they should have the same chance to participate. It doesn’t criticize the sport itself but argues for equal access.
  2. Marxist Feminism: This perspective says that sport is affected by class differences. It argues that women’s limited access to sport is part of a bigger system where gender and class inequalities affect their opportunities in all areas, including sport.
  3. Radical Feminism: Radical feminists believe that sport has been controlled by men and is part of a system where men have more power. They argue that sport reflects and reinforces this male dominance, leaving women out.
  4. Socialist Feminism: This combines ideas from Marxist and radical feminism. It looks at both how men control sport and how class differences affect women’s opportunities. It provides a broader understanding of how gender, class, and power all influence women in sport.
  5. Poststructuralist Feminism: This approach challenges the ideas in the other theories. It says that gender is not fixed and can be shaped by different factors like culture, language, and individual experiences. This perspective calls for a more flexible way of thinking about gender in sport.

Exercise 8: Notes Prompt (optional)

NB: Cornell notes is a great resource that teaches effective notetaking. Unfortunately, our system can’t save notes taken in the H5P app, so this is fully optional.

Exercise 9: Crossword Activity 

Exercise 10:  Padlet Prompt

Create your own word cloud including all of the important terms and concepts covered in the article that were not included in the crossword activity! (Record or screenshot your response below).
Bodies-at-risk: This concept focuses on the idea that certain bodies (especially women’s bodies) are seen as vulnerable or in need of protection due to cultural, social, or political reasons. In sport, this idea can shape how women’s participation is regulated, often under the assumption that they need to be protected or controlled. It’s a critical term when discussing the regulation of women’s bodies in sports and how society views their physical capabilities.
Exercise 11: Padlet Discussion Prompt (optional) 
The illustration featured in this padlet (of a basketball with the word “women’s” eclipsing a basketball bearing the word “men’s” at the time of the solar eclipse) ran last year in a Philadelphia newspaper piece about how athletes like Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark were generating unprecedented enthusiasm for women’s sport. Do you feel the landscape is changing? Do people care about women’s sport?

The illustration you described shows how women’s sports are starting to get more attention, with athletes like Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark becoming popular and loved by many. This could be a sign of real change for woman, but it’s hard to say if it’s just a short-term trend or something more lasting. Recently, women’s sports have been getting more attention, like higher TV ratings and more media coverage, which is a positive sign. However, for it to keep growing, people need to continue supporting women’s sports, such as by investing more money, ensuring equal pay, and challenging old stereotypes. While more people are starting to care about women’s sports, the change will only stick if athletes, the media, and society continue to work together to create a lasting impact. It’s about making sure women’s sports are celebrated and supported at all levels, not just focusing on a few stars.

 

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This work (Gender, Sport, and Social Justice by Kelly McGuire and Faynella Robinson) is free of known copyright restrictions.

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