It's easy to dump on the backward red states and some of their abhorrent views, but that Deadspin article is some real yellow journalism. Grossly biased and misrepresentative of the overarching issue. Also ignores the explanation of why the team was not awarded the trophy. A quote from someone involved in the system long-term.
"“I’ve coached both boys and girls in Hoover for years and can assure everybody that they don’t discriminate against girls.
This policy has been in place for years. Hats off to this team for winning the championship. It is unfortunate they couldn’t get the trophy but it sounds like Hoover is going to make it right by honoring the girls. The same thing happened to a boys team.
Since Hoover has limited gym space and high demand for practice facilities it makes it extremely difficult to accommodate everyone. Hoovers’ policy has always been that if you want to use a Hoover gym for OTM practice then you must participate in the rec league. Most coaches want to keep their OTM team together and play them in the rec league. Since this would be an unfair advantage because most of the OTM teams are comprised of the best players, they are required to play “up” by two grade levels. In this case, the girls are in 5th grade and there is no 7th grade girls rec league so they had to play against the 5th grade boys.
In the past and I’m sure here too, the league tells the coaches well in advance that you can sit out the tournament or you can play but you will not get a trophy. In the 15 plus years I have coached, I’ve never seen a team win it all playing up, so congratulations to these girls and the coaches for winning the championship. Trophy or no trophy, they are the champions.”"
Seems the City of Hoover (SW Birmingham) is trying to make this right and go against their own policy in awarding trophies to the girls team, but the author is trying to make more out this. A policy from a local Parks & Recreation Department is now representative of all things that are wrong with gender equality?
"The lesson, it would seem, is that even when women are more qualified, work harder, and achieve more than men, they still are not as worthy. It’s a lesson too many Americans have learned too well, given the number of men who decry equity and inclusion with the old trope, “hire the most qualified person!” while refusing to consider that anyone who is not a cishet white male could ever be the most qualified for the job."
And this beauty.
"Sexism is taught in reinforced in American society in a myriad of ways every day, big and small. It’s long past time we realized how young we start teaching children the message that boys are always, always superior and more deserving than girls, no matter the circumstances. The Hoover girls’ 5th-grade team is owed an apology from every single adult involved in this buffoonery."
Yellow journalism. And you wonder why conservatives have such visceral reactions toward the "woke mob" and their behaviors? Molehill manufactured into a mountain.
|