"now cheer each other" king richard iii: ii, ii

Today I had to pop over to the mall to pick up a couple of things. The mall here in town is adjacent to the convention center, and this weekend there is a cheerleading competition going on there. V ran into just the tip of the iceberg this morning when he thoughtfully stopped in at the Dunkin Donuts down the street from us to get me a cup of joe and a bagel -- he stood in line for 25 minutes behind a gaggle of cheerleaders and cheerleeder moms all ordering their triple-whip vanilla Coolattas (what a way to get your game-face on, kids!). But the mall -- oh, the mall. It was packed to the hilt with teens and pre-teens in cheerleading uniforms, complete with sparkly ribbons in their hair and sparkly makeup on their eyes. They were excited, happy, shrieking and laughing as they ran around in the mall, bumping into passers-by without so much as a by-your-leave.

Am I the only one who finds images like this highly distressing?



Honestly. How old could she be? Am I terribly prudish to think it's vastly inappropriate for a girl years away from puberty to be wearing such revealing clothing, especially in the context of an activity that traditionally marginalizes women? What if I told you that I saw a little girl today who could not have possibly been older than 3 wearing an outfit that was nearly identical to this one? I suppose I'm generally not in favor of this kind of clothing for women, so maybe my opinion is not based on objective reasoning.

The thing is that I feel conflicted when it comes to the sport of cheerleading in general. There's no arguing with the following facts about cheerleading: it promotes athleticism, healthy competition, teamwork and team spirit among young women, and self-discipline. At the same time, the role of the female cheerleading team as "support" for the more primary male sports teams has not really diminished. I can a little more easily get behind these cheerleading competitions which are more focused on the athletics and the team. But even these still contain all the trappings of the old-guard cheerleading; that is, that the girls' bodies and faces are there to be showcased. Honestly, is a short skirt and a shirt that's likely to ride up over your boobs really the outfit that a woman would choose first to be most practical in this kind of athletic event? No, of course not -- these outfits are designed to be pleasing to the male observer or receiver of the cheering.

On the one hand, I try to bear in mind that true empowerment for women comes when women are able to choose the activities, clothing, etc. that they truly want, without judgement from men or women. So if that means that a woman wants to be a stay at home mom, a cheerleader, or a diplomat, she should be able to do so without being judged as either "too girly" or "too man-ish." On the other hand, I really think women - and I include myself here - need to continuously look honestly into their hearts about why they make the choices they do. Do you dress in a tank top and boy-short underwear to go to the club because you honestly feel your best that way? Or do you do it because you feel it will make you more pleasing to someone else? And if it's the latter, then at least own that, and admit that that is what you truly want, rather than trying to act like you do it to be empowered. We're all allowed to make choices, but let's be honest about why we choose the things we do.

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On a slightly related note, tonight is, of course, the SuperBowl, and I couldn't be more excited. I will not, sadly, be able to watch most of the game, since I will be working at the Empire Revue. However, I will be keeping up with the score and rooting all the way for the Patriots. After spending my youth watching the Pats lose, and lose, and lose, year after year, this season has been uber-exciting. I'm a worrier, so naturally I'm worried something will happen to keep my team from the title and the record, but overall I feel pretty good about the game, and I think we're gonna win it!!

Gooooooooooooooo Patriots!!! *does a split leap in the air with pom-poms*