Dallas Gentleleaders: The Dallas Cowboy Cheerleader

Cheerleading started as a male endeavor in 1898, when a University of Minnesota football fan led the crowd in verse in support of their team. It was not until World War II, when men shipped out to war, that women took over. Then cheerleaders came to represent the American ideal of femininity: wholesome apple pie with washboard stomachs, perfect teeth, and flawless complexions. Stereotypes cast them as blond, petite, and impossibly perky. “From its humble beginning cheerleading has blossomed into a competitive athletic activity with a serious image problem” (Forman 52). But today’s post-feminist youth have put a new, diverse face on cheerleading. Cheerleading in America is no longer a matter of waving pom-poms, a cute smile and being overly

Cheerleading has been closely related to American football, beginning in Industrial Times (1850-1920) through modern times. In fact, cheerleading seems to go hand-in-hand with American football. According to the official cheerleader’s handbook it was one cheerleader named Shirley Windsor who after seeing his schools potential in their first game against Nebraska with the help of fellow students paid to build a new stadium. This essay aims to explain the importance of cheerleading, most specifically the key founder and organizations, safety dilemmas, and the culture surrounding the sport.

In the early 1990’s, All-Star teams emerged. These are cheerleading teams not associated with schools or sports leagues, whose main objective is to

The sport of cheerleading has been around for a long time; since 1884 in fact! In the beginning, cheer was a sport dominated by college men. Since, women have taken over, and in 1967 the first ranked college cheer competition was held. Both school and competitive cheerleading offer many rewarding opportunities. Though they are a part of the same sport, the two types of squads are actually quite diverse. School cheer is undeniably a worthwhile and respectable sport, but competitive teams often provide a more challenging approach, and are more suited to experienced cheerleaders.

Society today has distorted what a healthy physique actually looks like. It tells you, if you don’t have muscles bulging from under your skin then you are out of shape. And that if you are overweight you are just ugly. Another false concept is that if you are overweight you’re lazy or not self disciplined (Bordo 2). There are so many factors that have to be accounted for when evaluating someone’s weight. To assume that someone is lazy or weak because they are overweight, is ignorant. Many people are deceived into thinking that obesity is terrible like a sin. In her article Susan Bordo gives an example of a study taken where children chose obesity to be more uncomfortable or embarrassing than dismembered hands or facial deformities when shown

“Modern cheerleading has evolved into a sport that is more akin to mixed martial arts, where legs and arms are constantly flailing and at any moment a participant is risking a violent shot to the head” (Cheerleading- the Forgotten Sport).

Cheerleading is a very competitive sport and takes a lot of effort. There are several types of cheerleading that a person can participate in. Unlike most sports, cheerleading is not just limited to male or females. Both can participate separately or together. In addition, cheerleading can be a recreational sport for some, provide an education, or even be done as a full-time job. Cheerleading is also offered at all age levels. Children as young as 2 can participate in competitive cheer. This paper will not only persuade you that cheerleading is the best sport, but also persuade you that the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders are the best cheerleading team in the NFL. The Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders (also known as the DCC) is the best cheerleading team in the NFL because more than 500 women come to tryout each year, their ages range from 18-40 years and you have to try out each year to maintain your spot on the team.

Football fans and dreamers all over the United States universally favor Louisiana State University. Many young people aspire to become an LSU Tiger. Some of them aim to become a Louisiana State University football player, while others desire to become a member of the popular LSU cheerleading squad. Claire Walpole, a varsity cheerleader at Weston High School, was able to fulfill a dream that she had for an exceptionally long time. She had the chance to cheer with the Louisiana State University cheerleading squad. It was an opportunity of a lifetime. Although it only lasted one day, she will remember this experience for the rest of her life.

From a young age, I held a passion for being a part of my future high school’s football team. As a fourth grade girl, I figured the only way to participate in such a way was to become a cheerleader. Attending the mini cheerleading camps filled me with excitement and anticipation of my future as a Reicher Catholic High School cheerleader. However, I later realized my lack of dedication to the sport decreased my likeness towards cheerleading. In sixth grade I spoke up about that realization to my family, who told me about the sports medicine program at Reicher. “The football trainers are considered a part of the team,” said my brother. I quickly set my mind towards becoming a Reicher football trainer of sports medicine instead, becoming absorbed

Although despite all the stereotypes, men are also complimented in this sport. Since cheerleading has been deemed as a female sport for many ages, when men joined cheerleading, this led to judgment by people such as friends and family. Judgments were sometimes based on thinking that the male was gay or more feminine. Although when a male cheerleader’s friend or family sees their friend or son perform, they become less judgmental. Thus, this is because the person who sees this sport becomes aware that cheerleading is more than just pom-poms that are generally stereotyped in movies. Men are respected by cheerleaders in the community of cheerleading since it demands an excessive amount of physical force as well as endurance. Thus, a male cheerleader is usually seen as a perk since they can lift their flyer much

One goal. One adventure. One family. Two coaches. Twenty athletes. 100 reasons and more why being a south Forsyth cheerleader is like no other experience.

One of the three settings where cheerleaders are in their natural state is tryouts. I decided to interview two of my school’s “Comet Ladies,” Summer and Mariah. We talked about the mood of the room, how tryouts are set up, and how supportive the girls are of each other. As you can imagine, with a room full of girls who know they have a chance of not making the cut, the atmosphere is very intense. Most of the girls can do almost everything on the list of requirements, but just knowing they are watching and critiquing them makes them really nervous every time (Yancer,

Many people agree that the London Middle School Poms team is chosen unfairly. Out of 27 students in Mrs. Harrold’s reading class, 19 said they felt that sports teams, including poms, are chosen unfairly (Class Survey). This shows that over half the students, including 8th graders who tried out, feel that the poms team is not picked correctly. In addition to this, Ella, a 7th-grade girl, tried out for her school cheer team. “I really want to be a cheerleader,” she cried. As a mom, it thrilled me to see her so passionate about something... yet this also raised the stakes. If cheer didn’t work out, she’d be heartbroken. (8 Lessons I Learned From My Daughter’s Cheerleading Tryouts) this shows how kids react if they don’t make the school sport.

Many have seen her. Many know her. But who is the American cheerleader? Is she a blond haired, blue eyed sex symbol? Is she a drug-addicted girl with no brains and even fewer moral values? Maybe she is just your average, pretty, girl-next-door with a loud voice and lots of spirit. What is clearly true is that cheerleading and cheerleaders have evolved greatly over a century-long history. What started as one bold college student has turned into an activity with over 3 million participants (Brady 1); one that is backed by a $150 million industry (Williams 2). Modern cheerleading has come a long way from its historic roots, but large differences still exist between the iconic cheerleader, the stereotypical cheerleader, and the truth.

The cheerleading squad issometimes portrayed as bullying non-cheerleaders and judging nerds. One of the hard parts aboutbeing on a team is that one person's actions affect the entire group's reputation. If one cheerleaderis a snob, others may think the entire squad is snobbish. A cheerleader's role is to promotepositivity, not negativity. Many cheerleaders are naturally spirited and their goal is to raisepeople’s spirits; not bring them down.