High School Sport

During the time of high school sports and when they emerged social conditions looked very sexist and racist.  This is why today we see some of the women's sports in high school looked at as activities and not actual sports.  They were more sports to cheer on the men to play.  Also there are perverse race distinctions of the sports and when they emerged a lot of them were made up of white men.  As this has actually changed over time there is still some of the lingering effects that started with the creation years ago.  In the actual study from Doug Foley done in a small high school in he Texas he quotes "As in most pep raffles, on the Friday I am describing, the cheerleaders were in front of the crowd on the gym floor doing dance and jumping routines in unison and shouting patriotic cheers to whip up enthusiasm for the team. The cheerleaders were acknowledged as some of the prettiest young women in the school and they aroused the envy of nobodies and nerds. Male students incessantly gossiped and fantasized about these young women and their reputations."  This quote fully puts into perspective the type of role girls played in high school 'sports'.

Jay Coakley wrote about high school sports were supposed to embody this idea that by putting kids and young adults through sports would build character.  And not just an athlete character but one that was considered to be successful in every aspect of his (mainly) life.  He further addresses that was no need for research into actually seeing what these athletes became and what type of character they have because of this idealized quote of "sports make what I am today."  High school sports are supposed to build character and personal traits that are to set a person up for the rest of their life and in whatever they do in life, because of sport they will be successful.  However, from many scenarios we have seen about athletes that sports have built them to be such an incredible athlete that once it is all gone they have no character outside of sports.  Also, high school sports have classified the athletes as  better people than the kids who choose not to compete in sports and take part in other activities.  One part of Foley's study that the did he talks about the treatment of band members in which he entitles "The Marching Band and The Band Fags" which just about sums up what the entire section is about.  High school sports in some instances have built kids in to great young adults with lots of character and in other instances it has led to perverse socialization of athletes over non-athletes.  

Currently the status of interscholastic sports is two sided debate between the necessity of high school and/or college sports.  Some people argue that interscholastic sport is taking away from what sport is meant to be and that it also takes away from the important things in school.  On the other side of the argument are the people saying that student athletes actually do better in school and more often they graduate from high school and go to college.  

Some problems with interscholastic sport is that it changes the student culture within the school, often giving popularity and fame to athletes.  This then tends to glorify the athletes and puts all other students not in sports as the other and they don't fit in.  This type of behavior is what starts what was previously mentioned about the marching band being called band fags.  Not only does this create a hierarchy among the activities students participate in, but it also creates a hierarchy in gender, orientation, class, race, and ethnicity.  These are the problems that people emphasize that are wrong with interscholastic sports.

I think one solution to one of these problems is that schools and especially coaches and anyone or anything reinforcing these sports as better than any other interscholastic activities needs to stop that and actually do the opposite.  These people and institutions that are in charge need to a better job making all interscholastic activities as important as the next.  There is no reason why football needs to be placed as a superior sport or activity to band or anything else.  I think helping this equality of activities will also help to slightly get rid of the sexual orientation put-downs that we hear so much.  There are any problems with interscholastic sports, but there are also a lot of the great things that sport has done for students and I don't think those need to be overlooked either.

The Great American Football Ritual:
Reproducing Race, Class, and
Gender Inequality