Gender Inequality In Sports Essay

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The issue of gender equality has always been a concern for females who have wanted to participate in sports. For a very long time men believed that sports were only meant for their sex and that sports were locations that served as opportunities for them to prove that they were heterosexual and masculine. So when women finally wanted to be able to join in sports activities as well it is not a surprise than many men resisted this concept of females as athletes. Slowly but surely female athletes fought for their right to engage in sports. While women have many more opportunities in today’s society in regards to engaging in sports women are still vastly underrepresented in sports. This is largely due the gender inequality that still takes place …show more content…

Gender ideology has three main beliefs connected to it. These three main beliefs are that a person is either one of two sexes (male or female), heterosexuality is what is normal because it is how we are able to reproduce and any other demonstrations of sexuality are immoral and inherently wrong, and men are stronger than women so as a result they are better suited for positions of authority in society. Gender ideology encourages men to see women as weaker than them and therefore they cannot perform physically challenging sports activities as well as they need protection due to being the weaker sex. Jay Coakley confirms this idea by stating that “sports continue to be male dominated, male-identified, and male-centered” (Coakley 184). These concepts of sports being centered around men helps people realize that gender ideology strongly affects the culture of sports; it makes people perceive sports as social worlds based on gender where males and females should be separated due to their natural differences. Another major problem with gender ideology is that, “it leads people to see males and females as different and unequal” (Coakley 182). Men have greater access to positions of authority and influence than females do especially when it comes to sports. In his article Gender Differences: Sports Sexualizing Women, Ted Sanders confirms the gender differences stressed in the world of sports by asserting that, “Professional sports specifically strains gender differences. These differences present an overwhelming challenge for women to be accepted in a male dominated and masculine institution” (Sanders). This is why it has taken so long for females to be able to have a role in the world of sports and why they are still fighting for complete

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