Sports Pages #15-Final Reflections

I've always been a big fan of sports, but I never really considered the broader societal and social impacts that they have. In this class, I learned how to analyze the sporting culture in provocative ways, and I now have a better understanding of what sports truly represent in our society. I now realize that factors such as gender, race, sexual orientation, and socioeconomic status have a huge impact on sports, and that as much as we like to believe that sport represents equality, the truth is that we have a long way to go to get there. I think that this is the biggest fact that I will take away from this class, in that sports truly are a microcosm of society in many ways, and many of the same issues that plague our society off of the field/court unfortunately affect athletes as well. Issues in society such as the masculine glorification of violence affect the landscape of contact sports, but at the same time, more positive values such as courage, teamwork, and perseverance also apply within sport as well. Overall, this class was definitely my favorite one of the semester, and I definitely will apply the things I learned when I watch sports in the future, and also will have a more educated perspective on how sports and society intersect.

Sports Pages #14

I believe that sport is becoming increasingly tolerant of LGBT attitudes, however, at the same time, it still has a long way to go. The film "Training Rules" suggests that homophobic attitudes are still a significant issue at the collegiate level, as former Penn State women's basketball coach Rene Portland openly expressed her distaste for lesbians. The troubling issue brought up in the film was that Portland was not disciplined for her comments, when she likely would have been had she discriminated against blacks, asians, or other racial/ethnic/religious groups. This suggests that there are still boundaries to overcome regarding homosexual acceptance in sport, and that some individuals are not shy about openly discriminating against homosexuals.

In recent times, there have been several athletes who have revealed themselves to be gay, such as NFL draft prospect Michael Sam, and NBA player Jason Collins. Their homosexuality has been a subject of constant debate regarding how it fits into the heteronormative culture of sport. Soccer player Robbie Roberts explained how the masculine culture surrounding sports makes it difficult for gay athletes to come out, as they face stigmatization and harassment by peers and fans. Similarly, the article regarding a current gay NFL player who is afraid to come out due to his fear of homophobic fans further emphasizes the issue of gay acceptance in our culture.

Ultimately, I think that in time, society will become almost completely tolerant of gay players in sport. There was once a time when black players were stigmatized, and over time, our culture becomes more progressive and accepting. I don't see why the same wouldn't happen with homosexual players, however, as the articles and the film show, we still have a long way to go to get to that point. Having open discussions about the issue is sure to help people understand the subject matter at hand, and in time, hopefully the vast majority of fans and athletes will be accepting of homosexuality in sport.

References: Training Rules movie and the articles provided