This article covered a topic I was unfamiliar with: the history of women in America playing football. The article begins by informing readers why it became a norm for women not to participate in football, even though in the early development of American Football, women participated. What I found most critical to that argument was the “four rules” of media coverage that Bruce identified in the reading:
- Sportswomen don’t matter
- Emphasize female athletes’ relationship with men and highlight attributes historically related to women (emotionality or physical weakness)
- Sexualization of the female athlete.
- Ambivalence, juxtaposing a female athlete’s talent with traditional feminity (quiet, meek, etc.)
American Football began to be associated with traditional concepts of Masculinity: brutal, harsh, angry, etc. Which immediately creates a problem for female athletes looking to participate. The article describes how women looking to play American Football did so but would play secretly, adhere to social norms publicly, and modify the game slightly.
Interestingly, the author proves that historically, the media was not too concerned with Female Athletes or teams competing in American Football. The pressure and struggle came against societal norms and males during this time. What stuck out to me the most during this reading was an attempt to create a league as early as 1897. It’s fascinating that during a time of suppression for women, there was a clear challenge to the norm with their engagement with American Football.
