Woke people don’t stereotype, right? And, of course, white men can’t jump. Hm. Consider the following.
For relaxation, my wife Laurel and I attend a bi-weekly creative writing workshop. For a recent assignment, our instructor Jo Scott-Coe asked us to write about chocolate. Each of the other participants wrote about food. Not me. For whatever reason, Jo’s assignment triggered thoughts of former National Basketball Association guard Jason Williams.
The theme for this month’s edition: what gender related issues should be addressed and how can they evolve productively? Let’s up the ante. What gender related issues must be addressed? Here’s one: transgender women in sports.
Oh that all equity conflicts could be resolved simply by mouthing diversity clichés. Not this one. With regard to this perplexing issue, two pro-diversity camps have gone to war. Probable allies on most equity concerns, these two camps have dug in their heels, often engaging in hyper-accusatory rhetoric in what has become known as the TERF wars.
TERF stands for trans-exclusionary radical feminists. That term is used derogatorily by trans activists when referring to feminists who are perceived as not fully and unconditionally accepting trans women into their ranks. Targets include TERF lesbians, revealing an LGBTQ split over this issue. Continue reading Diversity and Speech Part 19: The Gendered Sports Dilemma – by Carlos E. Cortés
Sport plays a significant role in creating communities as common bond is formed when individuals and teams compete celebrating their successes and failures with others. The Olympics is as much a peace movement as a sporting event with the Olympic flame a symbol of harmony, cultural plurality and togetherness. Athletes have been practitioners of Inclusion & Diversity (I&D) for decades meeting and connecting with people from other countries and backgrounds setting aside differences and developing a sense of fair play for all. Nicknamed “The Greatest”, Muhammad Ali is one of the most celebrated sporting figures of the 20th Century and he brought the whole world together when an estimated global audience of 1 billion viewers watched his famous “The Rumble in the Jungle” fight with George Foreman. In the 21st Century, major sporting apparel companies understand the ubiquitous commercial benefits of I&D as evidenced in the World Economic Forum article titled: The business case for diversity in the workplace is now overwhelming which stated:
“It is important for corporations to step up and advocate for diversity and tolerance on a public platform. A great example of this is Nike’s support of American football quarterback and rights campaigner Colin ` Kaerpenick. More than a marketing exercise, it showed the world that one of America’s best-known corporations was willing to stand aside one man in his battel against racial injustice and intolerance.”
Occupations in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) are critical to our nation’s workforce, infrastructure and future. STEM jobs are in high demand right now, across all industries, and will be for the foreseeable future–the number of STEM-related jobs is projected to grow to more than 9 million between 2012 and 2022, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. But are we putting our money where our future is?
Continue reading Scholarship Dollars: STEM vs. Sports – by KDM Engineering
