147 LT -
Gender, Race, and Sexuality in Women's Sports in Latin America and the United States
Friday, June 2, 2017: 3:30 PM-5:00 PM
BRESL 217 (Hofstra University)
Organizer:
Brenda Elsey, Hofstra University
Comment:
Amy Bass, The College of New Rochelle
Session Abstract
Women’s sports in the Americas have always been transnational, both in terms of competition and relationships among sporting publics. Latin American sportswomen, journalists, and clubs watched developments in women’s sports in the United States and Europe with great interest. By examining Latin American women’s sport in conversation with that of the United States, the panel seeks to sharpen our understanding of the relationship between gender, race, sports, and politics. Throughout the Americas, women experienced similar obstacles to their participation in sports. Misogynistic views justified by flawed public health concerns, fear-mongering regarding sexuality, and appeals to conservative gender norms interrupted women’s and girls’ access to sporting possibilities. Sporting institutions, seeking to “protect” women and girls limited sportswomen’s post-athletic opportunities, and opened the gates to access only under duress and international pressure. While these strictures had differential impacts based on class and race, women all over the Americas found ways to participate. Whether in finding alternative sports--as Olympian Earlene Brown with Roller Derby; constructing parallel institutions as evidenced by Mexican women’s soccer leagues; or excelling in the few opportunities afforded them, as Dominican women athletes--women continued to play. Others, such as women marathoners, fought social stigmas with legal battles to gain access to the roadways, while Brazilian women played despite legal restrictions. This panel seeks to compare experiences across the Americas as a way to broaden our understanding of women’s social and cultural history through sport.
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See more of: Lightning Session