Slut-Shaming Has Seeped Its Way Into Sports

By: Victoria Gonzalez

    Have you ever experienced gender stereotyping in a sport?

Chances are you probably have, but because this is something that is so deeply ingrained in our society, you didn't realize it at the time.

Gender stereotyping in sports can take so many forms. The gender pay gap, lack of sponsorships for women, under-crediting female athletes, sexualizing female athletes, and even just societal stereotypes.

I'm sure we've all heard the phrase "Like a girl."

We've all heard someone utter the phrases "You run like a girl," "You hit like a girl," etc. with the attempt to be derogatory because for some reason, in our society today, "like a girl" has become the ultimate insult.

These societal putdowns are just the first steps towards normalizing bigger issues like the extreme sexualization of women in athletics today.

    When I was a little girl, my dream was to be a cheerleader.

I loved the grace, agility, and flexibility of the gymnasts I would see on TV and I wanted to learn how to do flips and handstands and pyramids.

However, when I began expressing outward interest in cheerleading, I was met with a lot of:

"I'd never let my little girl wear a skirt that short."

"She's too young to be wearing all that makeup."

"I don't want my daughter learning to sit on the sidelines and cheer for the boys."

To make a long story short, I never got to do cheerleading. I can hardly do a decent handstand and I am the most inflexible person you will ever meet.

I have done my fair share of other sports though. I currently run Cross Country. I used to be a swimmer and water polo player. I did ice skating for a little while.

However, I've never done a sport that is performance-based like cheer, or dance, or gymnastics. What I mean by this is I've never done a sport where you're putting on a show and the way you look matters.

    But even in Cross Country, I've been sexualized.

For reference purposes, these are the type of shorts that the girls on my team practice and compete in.

For those of you unfamiliar with Cross Country, these shorts are called Spandex (colloquially known as "bun huggers")

I've heard too many times that these shorts are too short...my parents even tried to complain to the school about it once.

But this is what a lot of college runners and Olympic runners wear to compete.

This attire is meant to ease movement and improve performance. They're a lot more comfortable and don't chafe as much.

    However, as a result of the stereotypical narrative our society has written,     we've gotten to the point where slut-shaming has seeped its way into            sports too.

Karen Garconnier of Sayville, Long Island launched a "Ban the Brief" petition on October 14th to outlaw any type of bottom that cuts above the butt cheek.

When you look in the comment section of articles about "bun huggers" on Runner's World you see comments like:

"As a male, it is impossible to not sexualize such visuals"

And "Let's face...women track and cross country athletes know what they're doing and it's ALL about sex and sexual objectification."

Those are real comments that I copy and pasted from the article by the way. I'm not making this up. Click here to read

As a female athlete, I had worked hard and want nothing more than to be free to feel comfortable in my own skin (as I'm sure everyone else in the world wants as well, not just athletes).

However, when people are constantly teaching young girls that their bodies are inappropriate and they HAVE to dress modestly, it sends the message that their bodies are provoking and something to be ashamed of.

Our first amendment rights list freedom of expression and the way we dress is a form of self-expression. We do it for ourselves. To feel good. Not because we want males to sexualize us.

Sending the message that women have to censor themselves because it's "provoking" sends the message that women need to learn to practice a higher level of self-control because men are not capable of doing so and that is just wrong on so many levels.

Phrases such as: "Like a girl," "I'll never let my daughter be a cheerleader," and "As a male, it is impossible not to sexualize such visuals" are the first steps towards bigger problems like slut-shaming, normalized double standards, self-esteem issues, and even rape culture.

Contrary to the popular saying, "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me," words can hurt-a lot-whether you realize it or not.

So stop teaching girls that their bodies are sexual objects. Instead, let's teach this next generation how to feel comfortable in their own skin...everyone deserves that much.