Fittingly, in honor of Election Day being in roughly a week, we at Beyond The W decided to bring attention to a hot-button issue that fuses together sports and politics. Because as a Black-led independent outlet, sticking to sports is not in our vocabulary.
The last several years have seen tremendous growth in women’s sports. Supporting women’s sports used to be something that was seen as merely a charity. Now, it is looked at as something to do in large part for being good business.
But to be a supporter of women’s sports does not appear to have the same meaning that it used to even a few years ago.
Supporting women’s sports is supposed to be because one should see that women and girls can be every bit as athletic as men and boys – in many ways even more athletic than men and boys. It should be to acknowledge that someone’s athletic accomplishments should not be diminished solely because one is a woman as opposed to a man.
Women playing sports was once seen as hegemonically unacceptable – several books including Andrew Maraniss’ “Inaugural Ballers” delve deep into that reality. But since women have fought for their right to be on the field of play as opposed to merely on the sidelines as eye candy, their place in sports has not only been earned but solidified.
Unfortunately the concept of being a women’s sports supporter has been co-opted by bad actors who are using the platform of women’s sports to discriminate against Black, Brown and LGBTQ+ athletes.
A perfect example of this occurred not too long ago in Tennessee.
Mid-last month, MAGA Senator from Tennessee Marsha Blackburn hosted something called the “American Girls in Sports Celebration” with Outkick’s Clay Travis.
As mentioned in the above Tennessee Holler tweet, Travis once wrote a book basically saying that if a woman is not sexually attractive while playing sports that the sport is not watching.
Let us also note that Outkick has received actual media credentials into WNBA games. Scratch that. Outkick has requested credentials only to cover the Indiana Fever and only to cover Caitlin Clark.
Let us be clear – Travis is one of these bad actors who is riding Clark’s coattails (something – again – she is not endorsing) in an attempt to humble the Black and LGBTQ+ athletes within the WNBA. A lot of the social media vitriol and harassment Black players such as Angel Reese, DiJonai Carrington and Chennedy Carter endured this season? A lot of that was Travis.
It displays that a lot of the “support” that is coming from so-called backers of women’s sports nowadays is anything but genuine. And more than likely Travis still believes in the sexist thoughts he wrote about in his book. It is a good guess that what drew Travis to the former Tennessee Titans cheerleader he ultimately married had nothing to do with her intellect or her ability to hold a conversation.
Back to that October 10 event that was held outside of Memphis. When Travis and Blackburn talk “American Girls,” they really mean only white girls and women. Hegemonically attractive white girls and women to be specific. Clark fits their description. As do the Cavinder twins. As does Olivia Dunne. Megan Rapinoe or Courtney Vandersloot? Not so much.
Imane Khelif did not fit that description either. Remember she was the Algerian boxer who knocked out Italy’s Angela Carini so hard in a match at the Paris Olympics that it prompted an international controversy as to if Khelif was a man. Travis and others of his ilk used test results from that shining light of justice and fairness called Russia to back up their obviously homophobic and transphobic claim.
Khelif ended up with the last laugh. Not only did she leave the Paris Games with a gold medal, but she recently announced she is leaving the amateur ranks and going professional.
There is a very easy way to gauge if someone really is a true supporter of women’s sports or if they are only using the platform of women’s sports to advance a regressive political agenda. Ask a subject why they are a huge women’s sports supporter. Listen to their answer and hear for a phrase pertaining to “men” playing in women’s sports.
Then, lower the boom on this person by asking him or her to name 20 WNBA players without Googling. And no – they cannot say Clark and they also cannot say Brittney Griner who they probably only know more for the Russia ordeal from two years ago.
(Sidenote: If it was Dunne instead of BG who was imprisoned in Russia, these same individuals who slandered Griner’s name would swim across shark-infested waters at sub-zero temperatures to free her).
From transgender athlete bans in various states and counties (looking at you, Nassau) to vicious social media harassment of Black athletes, there is an obvious divide and conquer initiative going on from individuals who call themselves supporters of women’s sports.
And it is occurring because of individuals who, if around 40 or so years ago, would not even be endorsing the idea of women engaging in athletic competition because it is less “ladylike” than being a Victoria’s Secret model or Playboy cover girl.
Or an NFL cheerleader.
Women’s sports did not make the monumental strides it has in the last few years only for the waters to be muddied by bad actors in an effort to turn white women athletes against their Black, Brown and LGBTQ+ counterparts. Many of these are the same individuals who, a few years ago, tried to slander BG as not being a “woman” because she is a member of the LGBTQ+ community and speaks with a deep voice.
Thankfully, the women’s sports landscape has a litany of white allies that call out this bad faith effort for what it is. These include Rapinoe, Sue Bird, Breanna Stewart, Billie Jean King and Stefanie Dolson.
A woman athlete is a woman athlete – even if that athlete is Black. A woman athlete is a woman athlete – even if that athlete is transgender. A woman athlete is a woman athlete even if said athlete uses they/them/their pronouns ala Layshia Clarendon. A woman athlete is a woman athlete even if said athlete has a greater degree of melanin in their skin. A woman athlete is a woman athlete despite one’s romantic preference.
In fact, even if one were to remove all the references to “athlete” in the above graf, the same would still apply.
Period.
