Homophobia: The Problem in Recruiting

When I read the Title IX blog, ESPN Magazine Profiles Homophobia and Recruiting, there was one quote that stood out from all the others. “More optimistically, it suggests that the changing cultural attitudes about lesbians will eventually catch up to athletics and render the lesbian stigma meaningless there too.” This quote stood out for me because it shows that judging athletes based on their sexuality will one day disappear out of sports, just like in the past when women weren’t allowed to play sports and now they have their own professional leagues. It shows that even though women are treated differently in sports that will all change in the future.

I then made a connection to the article we read, "Ideological Control of Women in Sport" by Susan Birrell and Nancy Theberge. Although the Title IX blog suggests that lesbianism will one day disappear, for now women athletes have to hide their sexuality. Birrell and Theberge stated that women athletes who are presented in the media are often sexualized or, more specifically, heterosexualized. This quote shows us that homosexual athletes have to hide their identity and “become” heterosexual so they are not judged and aren’t seen differently than heterosexual athletes. The problem with women athletes hiding their sexual identity is that people still may judge them based on their body. If a woman plays sports and is muscular, people could get the idea that she is a lesbian, because she is built like a man. Just as the Birrell and Theberge state in their article that if a woman can play football and press 300 pounds then what does it mean to be a man. This means that if a woman can do what a man can do, she must be just like a man.

As the Title IX blog shows, certain coaches, like the Iowa State coach, want to hide the homophobia by emphasizing that their program has a “family-oriented environment” and want their players to spread the word. I can understand that certain players, who are homophobic, would not want to play for a lesbian coach because they are scared of the power she has over them. However, what I cannot understand is that homophobic coaches wouldn’t allow homosexual players on their team, even if they are great. One example of this would be former Penn State women’s basketball coach Rene Portland. Portland told players, while she was recruiting, that she would not accept lesbians on her team. I believe that if a player is good enough to play on a college team, sexuality should not be a factor. However some athletes can’t stand the pressure of hiding their sexuality. An example of this would be Emily Nkosi, who said that she left the Baylor basketball team because her internalized homophobia made her believe she would get killed. This kind of pressure should not be put on the players because a sports team is like a family. The coach and the players should accept their fellow athletes for what kind of person they are and not their sexuality.