WNBA offers advice to rookies
As part of the rookies’ orientation into life as professional athletes, the WNBA for the first time offered them hour-long courses on makeup and fashion tips … “The problem is if only 8 percent of the coverage is on women, and the vast majority of the time we’re talking about who they’re married to, what clothing they’re wearing, what kind of parents they are, there’s not much room left to say, ‘What a great athlete,’ ” Snyder said …
Renee Brown, the WNBA’s vice president of player personnel, said the league aims to show its players as “mothers, daughters, sisters, nieces and entrepreneurs” and their “womanhood” is important to promote the league. “You’re a woman first,” Brown said. “You just happen to play sports. They enjoy dressing up and trying on outfits, where back in the day, everyone just wore sweats. “Call it what you want. We’re just celebrating their womanhood.”
Jessica at Feministing sez: “So long as “womanhood” means adhering to traditional gender norms. When “womanhood” means being a kick-ass athlete, I guess it’s not worth celebrating.”
Yup. Sad.