...Social Inequalities of Sports The world of sports has so many different levels to it. In each separate sport, there are different levels that range from recreational and neighborhood teams all the way up to professional leagues. Getting all the way up to this professional or even the collegiate level is a very impressive feat that not many people can say they have accomplished. However, athleticism and talent are not the only thing that gets you to these levels. There are many other factors that have to do with how far you can take your sport and how far your sport will allow you to go. There are many different inequalities such as race, ethnicity, class, and gender that shape each athlete’s experience in their respective sports. The first is race and ethnicity. The conversation about racial inequality is currently a hot topic in the United States. However, over the last fifty years, the world of sports has made some of the best progress of any institutions. In the National Football League, two thirds of the league players are racial minorities, most of them being African American. Close to 25% of the league management positions are occupied by people of color. There were six African American general managers in 2012, and eight of the last 12 Super Bowl participants have either had a black coach or General Manager. The National Basketball Association also has a very good diverse athlete population. More than three quarters of all NBA players are African-American and people...
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...Gender Inequality in Soccer In American society, sports are an important part of our lives. For centuries, males have dominated a wide range of sports. This wide range of sports doesn't only include what type of sport, but also includes professional sports teams, college, high school and even elementary age teams. In modern day, women are still fighting for equality in sports. Even though Women sports have increased in popularity, gender inequality still exists today. Now and days, women are receiving more opportunities, but people still mainly prefer men's sports. Women are still not accepted as equal participants in the activity of sports or in sharing sports knowledge. Women are seen as weaker and not as capable as men when it comes...
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...Jacob Lauver Paper on gender in coaching There are many issues that result because of gender inequalities in coaching. Some of these include whether it’s right to have men coaching women’s sports while there are no women coaching male sports such as football. Another issue may be whether or not men are really better coaches then women and what the reason for that would be. The third issue that results because of gender inequalities seen in coaching such as how far is too far for male coaches coaching females in sports. The first thing I would like to talk about is whether it is right for men to coach women’s teams even if there are no women coaching male teams. In my opinion there is nothing wrong with this and I feel like the statistics back this up. To my knowledge there has never been a female athlete at a big time college that has complained that she wants a female coach. And to back this up, Geno Auriemma is one of the greatest coaches in women’s college basketball ever and he continues to get great recruits because girls want to play for him. However if females where to coach a men’s basketball team I doubt there would be many guys at UF that would be happy if some women came in and took Billy Donovan’s place because quite honestly it would be tough for her to do a good job simply because it’s a tougher much faster game then women’s basketball and its a lot easier to coach when you know how to play it. The second reason I think that this is ok is because...
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...among competing social groups (classes, genders, races, religions, etc.). When conflict theorists look at society, they see the social domination of subordinate groups through the power, authority, and coercion of dominant groups. In the conflict view, the most powerful members of dominant groups create the rules for success and opportunity in society, often denying subordinate groups such success and opportunities; this ensures that the powerful continue to monopolize power, privilege, and authority. You should note that most conflict theorists oppose this sort of coercion and favor a more equal social order. Some support a complete socioeconomic revolution to socialism (Marx), while others are more reformist, or perhaps do not see all social inequalities stemming from the capitalist system (they believe we could solve racial, gender, and class inequality without turning to socialism). However, many conflict theorists focus on capitalism as the source of social inequalities. The primary cause of social problems, according to the conflict perspective, is the exploitation and oppression of subordinate groups by dominants. Conflict theorists generally view oppression and inequality as wrong, whereas Structural-Functionalists may see it as necessary for the smooth running and integration of society. Structural-Functionalism and Conflict Theory therefore have different VALUE-ORIENTATIONS but can lead to similar insights about inequality (e.g., they both believe that stereotypes...
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...The Path to Victory of Pat Summitt Brittany Quay PXS 308 001 15 November 2012 In almost every aspect of the world there is some sort of gender inequality. In most sports the men have many more resources available to them compared to the women. There have been many great coaches and athletes who have overcome the obstacles that the fewer resources have brought on. These athletes or coaches have been successful regardless of the situation. One of these coaches is Patricia Head Summitt. Despite the gender inequalities that are evident in the sport of basketball she has become the greatest coach in the sport. Pat Summitt was born to Richard and Hazel Head on June 14, 1952. She was born in Ashland City, Tennessee. She married R.B. Summitt who she later divorced and together they had one son named Tyler. Pat attended the University of Tennessee at Martin. She majored in physical education and was a member on the women’s basketball team there. Along with playing for her school she was a member of the United States World University team. Summitt graduated in 1974. Immediately after graduating she was offered the job of head women’s basketball coach at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville. She accepted the job offer and worked in this position from 1974 until 2012. As a child Pat grew up in Clarksville, Tennessee but later moved across the county line to Henrietta, Tennessee so that Pat would be able to participate on a women’s high school team. She played...
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...Gender Equity in Sports Colleen Iardella American Military University Gender equity in sports describes an environment in which fair and equitable distribution of overall athletic opportunities, benefits, and resources is available to women and men and in which student athletes, coaches, and athletics administrators are not subject to gender-based discrimination. Title IX, passed in 1972 at the pinnacle of the women’s rights movement, banned sex discrimination in any federally financed education program. It threw into quick relief the imbalanced treatment of male and female athletes on college campuses. Ever since Congress passed the federal gender-equity law, universities have opened their gyms and athletic fields to millions of women who previously did not have chances to play. But as women have surged into a greater part on campus in recent years, many institutions have resorted to deception to make it look as if they are offering more sports to women. Throughout this paper I will discuss the issues of gender equity in sports. I will mention what equal opportunities women have to play sports and how they can develop the psychological, physiological and sociological impact from sports participation. Females are playing team sports more now than they were a decade ago and far more women will play team sports in the next decade. In the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association's (SGMA) study, the authors analyzed many team sports and the role that females...
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...Voices Feminist Visions all discuss issues such as inequalities across different systems such as gender, race, education, sports, and more, how feminist ideas relate to inequality, intersecting identities, and the idea of privilege. There are inequalities across systems that can be seen in the way that women are viewed in society. An example of this is shown in chapter one in an article called “The Housewives Moment of Truth” by Jane O’Reilly. O’Reilly main point focuses on the notion that even through time women are still seen as being simple housewives. In today’s society women have obtained various professional jobs that go beyond the just being a teacher, and even with their success there are people that see women’s role as being in the household. O’Reilly article displays an example of gender inequality, and more importantly shows how there is still a lot progress that needs to be made. Besides gender inequality, the readings also point to other types of inequality like race. Race is very important when looking at women’s studies because everyone has to tackle their own problems every day. For instance, a black woman who is of a lower class, a single mother, a high school graduate, and tackling two jobs is viewed differently by people in society than a white woman who is of the middle class, married, graduated from college, and who has a professional job. Each reading also go into details about other types of inequalities such as those in education, where women are seen...
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...Title IX: Equity or Elimination? Issues of gender equity have confronted American society since its inception. The Declaration of Independence specifically states that all "men" are created equal, leaving out women, just as the Constitution originally denied women the right to vote. Over the past two and a half centuries, however, women have striven to obtain equal rights. In 1848, for instance, leaders of the women's suffrage movement, such as Susan B. Anthony, adopted a Declaration of Sentiments calling for an equal rights amendment including women ("Women's Rights" par. 1). In 1920, the Nineteenth Amendment to the Constitution finally adhered to their wishes, giving women the right to vote. Despite these important steps, women in the United States, a nation founded on the ideals of freedom and equality, continue to battle for equal rights. A key moment in this fight for equality occurred in 1972 with the passage of the Title IX Amendment to the Equal Opportunity in the Education Act. Title IX states: "No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance" (Sadker par. 2). This piece of legislation has had a profound impact upon college athletics. The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) has interpreted Title IX as requiring an equal opportunity for male and female athletes at our...
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...known for initiating equality in women’s sports, its original purpose was to end gender discrimination in education. In fact, the words “athletics” and “sports” are not even stated in the aforementioned amendment. One positive consequence of Title IX regarding education is the elimination of admission quotas based on gender. Now all universities reviewed male and female applications equally. Lynne Ford argues that now “more women than ever before are enrolled in colleges and universities,” because statistics from 1979 indicate that “the number of women surpassed the number of men enrolled in college for the first time, and the upward trend has continued ever since.” However, one of the most detrimental inequalities between men and women was the wage or earning gap. Even though women have become a vital part of the American workforce due to the high demand for workers during World War II, females do not always earn as much as their male coworkers. This earning gap can be viewed as a lack in education equality. Thus, many feminist organizations and advocacy groups for...
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...past, many jobs that women would work, the same position as man, would get paid an inexcusable amount less. There was huge controversy on maintaining a consistent steady income for families which took a toll on children, who would suffer through this equity inequality. This policy was created to keep an equal balance of opportunity for everyone. Soon after, the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act signed by Barack Obama on January 29,2009 was established to emphasize the limitation on gender pay discrimination. On January 28,2013 the Fair Pay Act was reintroduced to contain work quality and pay based on seniority. Unfortunately Texas has not updated the pay equity policy since the Equal Pay Act and Fair Labor Standard Act of...
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...Sociology of Sport Due date: Teacher: Introduction Sociology is the study of human behavior and social interactions within particular contents. Sports sociology examines sports as a part of cultural and social life, and adds a different dimension and perspective to the study of sports and exercise. More specifically, sports sociology examines the relationship between sports and society and seeks answers to many issues and questions regarding sports and culture. Sports are a pervasive part of culture and are considered to be social constructions within society created by groups of individuals and based on values, interests, needs, and resources. Sport forms are created by groups of individuals. Each culture creates and uses sports for its own purposes; therefore, sports take different forms from culture to culture. It is only since 1970 that sports sociology has gained significant attention as a serious area of study. This is in part owing to the increasing major role sports play in our lives and the intellectual traditions in both physical education and sociology. In 1978, the North American Society for the Sociology of Sport was organized as a professional association; and its scholarly outlet for research, the Sociology of Sport Journal, was established in 1984. The International Committee for Sociology of Sport is acknowledged within the International Sociological Association, and both groups co-sponsor the International Review for the Sociology of Sport. Another scholarly...
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...The 14th Amendment Since 1868, United States citizens were promised by the 14th Amendment “equal protection of the laws” meaning all groups of people, no matter the race, religion or gender, are protected by the laws written in the Constitution of the United States. The ultimate cause of the Civil War was said to be because of the disagreement between certain states to abolish slavery. The same year the war ended was the same year the 13 Amendment passed which ended slavery. Three years later came the 14th Amendment. This is a very important part of the Constitution, considering that different groups of people have been through several cases of inequality in history, before and after this amendment was passed. Does the 14th Amendment really guarantee equal protection to all groups of people? The answer is no. Even after the 14th amendment was passed, certain...
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...On the day of June 23, 1972 Title IX of the Education Amendments was enacted by Congress and signed into law by United States President Richard Nixon. On this monumental day, women across the entire United States would no longer be discriminated on the basis of sex. Thirty-seven that would change everything, "No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance." This landmark federal statute was considered the most important step for gender equality since the right to vote given in the 19th Amendment. Hawaii congresswoman, Patsy T. Mink worked tirelessly by...
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...Every spring avid sports fans look forward to the biggest college basketball tournament of the year, most commonly known as March Madness. This competition consists of both men’s and women’s NCAA basketball teams who compete in hopes of making it to the respected and heavily televised Final Four. The Final Four is the last game for each remaining team before the National Championship game, where the two deserving teams are matched up against each other. This series of competition creates a rich supply of content for sports media networks to influence viewer’s values and attitudes. Networks have become increasingly knowledgeable and schematic in using sport entertainment as a way to promote their ideologies, values, commercialization and interpretations of sport. Studies have found that people turn to sports in the media for entertainment. The different forms of media are evolving and moving in a more prevalent direction than they have been in the past. With the explosive growth of internet users in the past decade, media companies have created a domain where they can input their interpretations of sporting events and coverage. These domains have become dominated by the 18-34-year-old demographic (Kian, Mondello & Vincent 2009) who use websites such as ESPN, the most widely used website for obtaining sports related news (Lefton, 2006 as cited in Battenfield, Redmond & Ridinger 2014), and Sports Illustrated to read about upcoming games, watch live coverage, or get the low...
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...By 1970, the government enacted protective legislation for women and they were now eligible for jobs that not too long ago were only for males. Between 1984 and 2009, the number of women working in America increased from 44 million to 72 million. (U.S. Census, 2014) Each year the goes by women lose several millions of dollars due to the gender wage gap that exists in America. This gap has been static for almost the last decade, as women have consistently earned only 77% of wht their male counterparts earn. (U.S. Census, 2014). Our gender should not define our position in society. Today the existence of the gender wage gap in the American workplace is a highly debated topic. There are many people who believe the gender wage gap has been solved or that it has not existed since the Equal Pay act of 1963 was enacted, which...
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