Miranda Talavera Béjar, Grade 12
UWCRBC
Soccer is a male-dominated sport, that is no secret. The male World Cup is seen as the most important event in soccer, while the female World Cup is dismissed. Soccer is about traits like strength and coordination, characteristics associated with men and masculinity, which is why women are not seen as fit and worthy to participate in it, although we are just as good of players as they are.
RBC has a soccer team, and it is implied that anyone can join regardless of their gender. However, the environment surrounding the team is not a safe space for women to develop our skills without the fear of being judged through the patriarchal lens of “female incompetence”. I love playing soccer, I have been playing for almost 10 years now, and I was still scared to join the team. The feeling of not being sure if I’m good enough to be part of a team brought me back to my years in elementary school, when all the boys would freely play soccer during recess and whenever a girl wanted to play as well, she would receive dirty looks and unfortunate comments. Simply saying that a place is open to anyone regardless of their gender does not automatically make it true, it needs to be achieved.
I missed playing soccer, and I was in dire need of a space that would accept me and make me feel like I was welcome there. Since I couldn’t find it, I created it. I did it for myself, and for all the women in my school who have also felt like spaces for them do not exist. More women than I expected signed up for my activity, each one of them more excited than the other to finally engage with a sport they never felt welcome in. Together, we worked hard to ensure a safe environment that enabled women to learn and make mistakes, while feeling comfortable with themselves and everyone around them. Unsurprisingly though, we received backlash for daring to claim our own spaces and making people uncomfortable by being present. Whenever we would go to the gym where we trained, we were met by the basketball team’s (which only has one female player) and the other soccer team’s dirty looks of disapproval and disbelief, and misogynistic comments.
No matter how much a space is portrayed to be inclusive, words are never enough. Women are not welcome even in “inclusive” spaces, and we receive backlash when we get tired and decide to create our own.
RBC has a soccer team, and it is implied that anyone can join regardless of their gender. However, the environment surrounding the team is not a safe space for women to develop our skills without the fear of being judged through the patriarchal lens of “female incompetence”. I love playing soccer, I have been playing for almost 10 years now, and I was still scared to join the team. The feeling of not being sure if I’m good enough to be part of a team brought me back to my years in elementary school, when all the boys would freely play soccer during recess and whenever a girl wanted to play as well, she would receive dirty looks and unfortunate comments. Simply saying that a place is open to anyone regardless of their gender does not automatically make it true, it needs to be achieved.
I missed playing soccer, and I was in dire need of a space that would accept me and make me feel like I was welcome there. Since I couldn’t find it, I created it. I did it for myself, and for all the women in my school who have also felt like spaces for them do not exist. More women than I expected signed up for my activity, each one of them more excited than the other to finally engage with a sport they never felt welcome in. Together, we worked hard to ensure a safe environment that enabled women to learn and make mistakes, while feeling comfortable with themselves and everyone around them. Unsurprisingly though, we received backlash for daring to claim our own spaces and making people uncomfortable by being present. Whenever we would go to the gym where we trained, we were met by the basketball team’s (which only has one female player) and the other soccer team’s dirty looks of disapproval and disbelief, and misogynistic comments.
No matter how much a space is portrayed to be inclusive, words are never enough. Women are not welcome even in “inclusive” spaces, and we receive backlash when we get tired and decide to create our own.
www.unitedworldwide.co