Comments on: A Few Questions for Laura Pappano

By: Talking About Girls - Visual images

Talking About Girls - Visual images — Fri, 30 May 2008 15:29:26 +0000

[...] and Visiting Scholar at the Institute for Quantitative Social Science at Harvard University. Laura Pappano is currently a writer-in- residence at the Wellesley Centers for Women at Wellesley College. and [...]

By: Talking About Girls : OUPblog

Talking About Girls : OUPblog — Thu, 29 May 2008 19:50:25 +0000

By: Greg Smith

Greg Smith — Fri, 14 Dec 2007 17:43:26 +0000

Do we need invent some new games that allow men and women to play together? So much of what we play and watch today favor physical advantages of one sort or another. We will never get to an intregrated level trying to modify the games we have to all coed play that is interesting to watch or play.

By: Kevin Carey

Kevin Carey — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 23:44:39 +0000

Hi,
My name is Kevin Carey, a past Sports Comissioner for Arlington County and Co-ed sports was one of my issues. Arlington Public Schools has a graph that demonstrates the physical difference between boys and girls. I think you are on the right track, but baby steps are needed. For instance a 10 year old girl is competitive in leg speed with an 8 year old boy. The spread grows by 3years by the time a girl is 15. Baseball discriminates by allowing no one to use a Little League field past the age of 12. This rule continues with the Babe Ruth Bambino league. This ddiscriminates against girls because the graph shows a 15 year old girl physically equal to a 12 year old boy.
By addressing these differences boys and girls could compete together.
You are on the right track and any help including these graphs I will provide to you.
Sincerely, Kevin

By: a.spicuzzi

a.spicuzzi — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 21:38:33 +0000

I think blaketed statements like “all single gender sports teams and leagues from professional to the most novice skill levels should be abolished” is a bad idea. I also don’t think that anyone is trying to make this point, including the authors of Playing With the Boys.

The point is: until women and girls receive the same respect of skill (or competency) as men and boys in the general sports arena, we should not expect that same respect in many other of life’s arenas.

So for this end, we should not separate based SOLEY on gender.

A great example is in golf. Why is it assumed that I, a woman who is an experienced golfer, should automatically be given the advantage of a closer tee to the pin than any given man (even if he is a novice), based on gender alone? I most likely hit a more consistant more accurate shot and have a lower handicap.

Why is it that on so many co-ed soccer leagues in which I’ve played, when a woman scores it is counted as 2 goals, and when a man scores it is worth 1. I have been playing soccer for 25 years, many men on the co-ed leagues I’ve played on are novice. By all rights, I should not get an advantage, because I am much more skilled, but some how my competence is not assumed…

The golf and co-ed soccer leagues are 2 of countless examples where womens’ competence in sports is not assumed, even when it’s deserved.

As a person I am extremely insulted when my competence is not assumed (at work, on the field, in general)…especially when I am beyond competent (sometimes above average, or even good compared to others in the leagues…imagine that!!)

So here’s a blanketed statement that I do think is okay “don’t assume I am not as good just because I am not male.” And don’t perpetuate the idea that females are not as good with institutionalizing these ideas by putting them in the rules.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 17:28:26 +0000

AS a female engineer and one who remembers the days before Title IX, I would be concerned that the push for co-ed teams in football and basketball etc.. woudl give universities the excuse to cut womens programs altogether which would in my opinion be a step back for female athletes who while talented would be unable to compete in sports where making the team is often subjective adn not made by pure standards compared to other sports like swimming and track etc. where your time says it all.”

This is exactly right. If we got rid of all-mens and all-womens teams as Pappano is proposing, the net result would be disastrous for women. Women could take some spots on the smaller scale sports such as skiing, rifle shooting, bowling, etc but for the big sports that everybody watches on TV at least 95% of it would be dominated by men.

The only position that a woman could get on a football team would be a kicker or maybe punter. For basketball a woman wouldnt get a spot at all. For baseball maybe 1 woman would make the team.

The bottom line is that the # of women athletes would plummmet overnight because men would beat women out for 95% of the spots on teh major sports teams.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 17:25:41 +0000

Laura Pappano wants it both ways. I got no problem with opening up all male sports to women. Lets let the women compete directly with men for spots on the team.

But if you are going to do that, its absolutely hypocritical and unfair to block men from trying out for women teams.

I seriously doubt Pappano would support the LPGA being opened up to men. I seriously doubt she would support opening up NCAA womens basketball teams to men.

You cant have it both ways. If Pappano REALLY wants a gender-neutral sports environment that means both all-men AND all-womens teams have to be abolished. But of course she’s not advocating that.

My guess is that if this scenairo were to happen, men would comprise 95% of all athletes in the big sports: football, basketball, baseball, etc

By: Bryan

Bryan — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 17:25:38 +0000

I just listened to an hour-long interview on the radio promoting the authors’ latest book. What a disappointing interview and a flawed take on sports and gender! The arguments are so close-minded and rigid that anything short of the authors’ point of view is unacceptable, even when their own arguments are terribly weak.

I respect women’s sports and the 100% encourage women to compete with men, if that’s what is desired. But don’t bash men’s sports because women’s sports haven’t been as lucrative or as popular.

If you want equality, then let men play in women’s leagues. We’ll see how well these arguments, drunk with feminist rhetoric, hold up in open play on the sporting field.

Maybe learning to celebrate and respect differences between genders is a better approach to sports than trying to argue that “we’re all equal” or, on top of that, women are discriminated against, too?

Boooo!

By: Chad

Chad — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 23:33:46 +0000

There are huge flaws in “Playing with the Boys.” For one, the book suggests that there should be as many girls represented in sports as there are males. Why doesn’t this take into account that there are more boys who want to play sports than girls do? Title IX enforces this discrimination against boys. It would give 100% of girls who want to play sports that right (a good thing), but at the expense of a larger percentage of boys who want to play but now can’t (a decidedly worse thing). For another, it wants teams to be co-ed. Even if girls proved better in try-outs to rightfully win a position, it doesn’t make it appropriate. It is disrespectful to both men and women to treat their physicality in the same way. For example, men don’t share a locker room with women not because we view them as inferior, rather we don’t treat them the same as we would men, out of respect for them as women. As for the claim that women would be just as good as men in sports if the rules and organization changed, that is purely speculation without any supporting evidence. Karen W. above, is correct, time says it all: Men hold the most measurable records in sports, simply because in general they are stronger, faster, and more athletic. Politics won’t change that!

By: Karen W

Karen W — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 18:28:15 +0000