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A Social Melting Pot

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Submitted By acollins
Words 1144
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Personally, Duke Basketball is not a team I would cheer for. I am from St. Louis, Missouri. I study and live at Mizzou as a freshman. Teams I would cheer for would be St. Louis teams like the Rams, the Cardinals, and the Blues. Since I go to Mizzou, I would also cheer for Mizzou teams, whatever the sport. Places like gyms, stadiums, fields, and courts gather people together. The gym everyone is gathered in (like the one in the picture) is a place where diversity can exist, and nobody questions it. Individuals come to meet friends, family, even strangers to become one fan base for their favorite team. No matter what differences these people have, they still manage to bond because of this one similarity. Everyone cheers for the same team, unless you’re in the wrong section of seats. This group, and any other large group of fans, represents a melting pot of people with different ethnicities, sexes, cultures, and/or religions. This picture of Duke fans gave me an appreciation for my hometown and the fact that so many of my friends and I love sports. It reminded me of the connection people feel when they are together, as one, cheering. Going to the baseball stadium, football dome, or ice rink, with my friends helped me grow closer to them. Through the excitement of everyone in the picture, the unity of school colors on each individual, and the diversity of sex and race, it can be determined that Duke's basketball team serves as some kind of social captivator for Duke fans, who are together watching the game. This picture shows the excitement of some people cheering on their school's basketball team. Everyone seems happy and excited. The body paint is an interesting concept. The color of someone’s skin tends to disconnect people sometimes. I think the younger generations are better at not being prejudice towards other races, but it still exists. This prejudice might always exist among people but when fans put body paint on, skin color doesn't seem to matter. What matters is that each fan cheers for their city, or school's, sports team. Now slapping body paint on everyone won't solve the world’s problems, but as long as people cheer for the same team, a sense of unity comes with every home game. Sports could also be an indicator that prejudice will always exist among humans. If a stranger was wearing the opposing team’s body paint then, instinctively, you wouldn't interact with them, unless it was an argument or debate of some kind. As humans, we naturally feel this sense of pride for groups that we are a part of. Whether it be by ethnicity, country, state, city, team, gang, religion, etc., this pride can often be aggressive. In Europe, soccer is a huge sport. Opposing fans get so aggressive with each other that riots and fights occur fairly often. Even though sports games unite cites and school, they detach people on the opposing side. Stadiums and arenas have gathered people together for thousands of years. Sports have existed since the beginning of humanity. Rome is one of the oldest examples of stadium sports. The Roman Colosseum gathered Romans together and it was a huge part of their social structure. These kind of places have existed since before Christ. This is a sign that these sports gatherings serve a purpose in society. People pay money to bunch up into a crowded place in order to see their team play in person because the entertainment value is so great. Today, technology makes it so that no one has to go to these games. In fact, you would probably get a better view on the T.V. at home than most seats in the stadium. But, the tradition of gathering in these places will continue to live on. The atmosphere of a ball park or football stadium is enticing to fans. The food, drinks, and alcohol give these places a party-like atmosphere, allowing for more social interaction. Gathering together with family and/or friends at these events is extremely common. This is probably because of the bonding that occurs during these social gatherings. The reason this has always been a tradition (of sorts) is because of the fact that most people have a good time, especially when they win. Fans will get upset or pissed off after their team loses, but that doesn't mean they won't come back to the stadium for the next big game. People usually leave happy and plan on returning in the future. Sports involve many of our natural instincts and abilities, as humans. We run, jump, dive, catch, pass, throw, kick, etc. We exercise basically all of our muscles. To most people these things come naturally. Some people are better than others at these kind of abilities but practice and exercise form athletes into the professionals we watch on T.V. These professional athletes are the most entertaining to watch. It is more entertaining to watch professional sports than high school or college sports. That is part of the reason why organizations like the NBA, the NFL, the NHL, the MLB, etc. make so much money. The best athletes in the world compete at the Olympics. I would say that this is another example of how athletics unite people. Americans cheer on Team USA for different events and sports, instead of individual cities cheering on their team, all of them unite in some way (if they watch the Olympics). We either meet at a friend or family member's house, go to a bar, or actually go to wherever the Olympics is held. Every culture around the world plays some kind of sport or game, and as long as there are people around to play, sports will always exist. Stadiums and sports gatherings will continue to serve an important role in our social structure. They give us a social melting pot, where diversity can exist. It is often overlooked but I think it is important to know that they exist for a reason. They exist because sports are awesome. People like sports. It's pretty straight forward. People pay money to watch games in person when watching it on television is essentially free. Professional sports are a big part of the entertainment industry. As long as people exist, sports will always be played and fans will continue to cheer for whichever team. Being a fan, is obviously more entertaining than being an accountant, doctor, or police officer on the job. It is an escape from work. It is a conversation starter. It is entertainment, and I am happy that sports, stadiums, and fans exist in my life. Whether people realize it or not, it helps bring us closer to the people we love.

Duke Fans in the House! 2010. Jock Junkie. Durham, North Carolina. May 12, 2010.

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