Under Armour: How Long Has Feminism Been Around In Sport?

Women participating in sports have become more and more popular thorough time. In 1990 there were only 2 sports for women in the Olympics, and in 2012 women have the opportunity to compete in every sport (Lal, 2015). They have become their own level of strong. Strong is the new beautiful. When discussing the topic of women in the media, it is known and understood that they are portrayed much differently than men.

This essay seeks to analyze Nike’s recent “equality campaign” commercial that was released in February 2017. Nike, the American sports brand giant who makes up 31% of the athletic footwear market (Keady, 2011), has been noted for creating political statements alongside the consumer goods that they produce. As seen in the short black and white filmed advertisement, famous American athletes Lebron James, Megan Rapinoe, Kevin Durant, and Serena Williams are depicted standing up against social inequalities experienced by racial minorities and other marginalized groups; other marginalized groups include those such as the LGBT community as represented by soccer star Megan Rapinoe. The basic idea behind the piece is to illustrate that if equality

The woman in the commercial reminisces of her father when she was younger which appeals to the audience’s sense of empathy. When she was young, her father taught her to ride a bike. The audience at one point likely learned how to do something from their guardian whether that was riding a bike or tying their shoes. Just like in the commercial, learning these qualities

Within sport, as throughout society, gender differences exist. The socially constructed phenomenon of gender dictates a dichotomous system whereby females are feminine and males are masculine. Focusing on females specifically, society determines the feminine traits and roles ascribed to this gender. Being domesticated, slender, passive and heterosexual are a part of the desirable appearance that society has formed surrounding femininity (Wolf, 1991). On the other side of the dichotomy is the masculine realm that sport plays into. Sport is fuelled by muscle, power and aggressiveness, which are behaviours and images associated to masculinity. Sport therefore, defies all existing female gender ideals. It would be assumed that females have no place within this institution due to the gender clash. However, female athletes do exist, and many are very successful. For this to work, sport has established and reinforced the social constructions of gender that exist in society. Female athletes are viewed as inferior and are pushed into gender appropriate sports. Furthermore, they are often labeled as masculine until they can prove otherwise, and so great attempts are made to reassert femininity. The stigma associated to being masculine or homosexual for female athletes is so great that many have become irrationally fearful of this label. The sexualisation of the female body and overt displays of heterosexuality are used in

On television it may seem that women athletes are treated the same like the males, but there is more than just what we see. Women receive no encouragement to participate in sports, and neither are they receiving a sufficient amount of support or getting enough attention from the media. However, it is unfair when females participate in a particular sport and are referred to as the “sexy competition”

Since the implementation of Title IX with the 1972 Education Amendments education, women athletics have increased tremendously. From 1972 to 2007 women’s college participation has increased by 138,000 and there has been a 2.7 million participant increase for high school women sports. Marketing tactics for women sports and women sports consumers have been impacted by this growth however it continues to be in the shadow of men sports. The article examines the marketing of women’s sport and the marketing of sports to women mostly on the collegiate level and makes suggestions for marketing to

Media “combines notions of feminism and traditional stereotypes of feminity to reinforce male dominance” (Carty, 152) by making female athletes to become sexualised. Even if female athletes try and bring out new ideas on power and strength in the society, they have to take a step back and conform to the patriarchal society and their norms. This takes the society back from any progress made and the efforts of women for equality, go in vain.

She has created a line of comfortable yet flexible dancewear for dancers today. She believes that all dancers should be able to look their bets while they dance and feel their best. Another way Misty has gained the recognition of millions is through her many principal roles, “she has been in Swan Lake, The Firebird, La Bayadere, and Le Corsaire, four nationally known ballets.” (Sulcas.) Misty also works in numerous commercials and music videos. “ Copeland appeared in a music video for the song “Crimson and Clover” by Prince.” (“Misty Copeland.” Brittanica) Misty had appeared on magazine covers including Dance Spirit and many other magazines of numerous genres. She is also interviewed for television shows and articles online. She has even appeared on some television shows, one is “A Day in the Life,” and even has movies of her own. Believe it or not, but this woman is also an author. Misty has written autobiographies on her struggles as a young African American ballerina. Misty was awarded an advocate role for the Under Armour “I Will What I Want” advocacy. Here, she has created a line of sports wear and is featured on many posters. Misty is definitely a figure that is known around the

Gender challenges in sports have been around for centuries. Male and female genders are treated differently in more than one way. The research I have gathered show the differences in all aspects of sports related business areas such as, ticket sales, facilities, price of tickets, media coverage, Sports Illustrated covers, and sports reporters. The purpose of this research is to bring attention the disparities that women follow in the business of sports. Women are stereotyped, discriminated against, and harassed in all aspects I have discussed. So my final thoughts on my research are that women will always be acknowledged for their beauty, body, and sex appeal. A woman’s knowledge of sports, athleticism, and love for the

Throughout many years there has been a great change of gender roles of men and women in our society, and especially in the world of sports. Over the last couple years female athletes have really strived to gaining equal representation and media coverage as much as the male athletes do. Female athletes are also starting to participate in more male dominated sports such as, MMA, hockey and even golf. These few sports have been perceived as “manly sports” which usually makes women feel that they shouldn't participate because they're not masculine enough. Even though there are many female athletes who feel discouraged to playing “manly sports” there are also plenty of female athletes who are trying to show younger generations that it's okay to participate and compete in sports that aren't necessarily “feminine sports”. The way that gender roles have been affecting sports for a long time are through behaviors, stereotypes and the perception of male and female athletes.

Although the main focus of their ad attracts to plus size women, they're also advertising to other brands found in these magazines. They’re making the argument that plus size women deserve more representation and these brands are not accurately showcasing 67% of American women. Lane Bryant rationalizes that their competitors are doing it all wrong. In Vogue, page to page, ad to ad, there are underweight models clad in scandalous clothing, admiring men in a submissive way. Lane Bryant is saying that there is a problem with how these women are portrayed in magazines and how we accept these pictures of women as the normal. Not only are they fighting to represent plus size women, they're also ending the view society has of the “normal woman” today. "Plus is equal, because everyone is equal,” stated Sabina Karlsson on her online webpage at PlusIsEqual.com. Sabina, just like the other models who are a part of the campaign, want to assure every girl that they’re bodies are not “wrong” simply because they do not look like the pretty, skinny women in the

Misty’s hard work and dedication got her to where she is now. She never gave up on herself even when life hit her hard in the face. “Over the past year, whenever Ms. Copeland, 32, danced leading roles with Ballet Theater…” Misty played many roles

One effective element in this ad is the genius use of Serena Williams. The use of her conveys popularity, success, skilled and beauty. She is perhaps the most famous tennis player amongst men and women. She is one who can actually say “ball is life.” Amazingly, Serena has been a professional tennis player since the age of 14. She is currently 33 years old, which means she has been playing tennis longer than she hasn’t been playing. Serena is currently ranked number 1

Over the course of time, sports have come to signify masculinity; athletics such as football and basketball easily having come to deem where one fits in terms of societal norms regarding gendered bodies. One could argue that sports, in a modern context, have come to be synonymous with the idea of athletic and/or muscular bodies, which are those that are not regarded as the bodies of ideologically feminine ones given the intense and high pressure nature. In “Sports and Male Domination: The Female Athlete as Contested Ideological Terrain” written by Michael A. Messner in 1988 sheds light on the idea that traditional images of femininity have come to solidify male privilege through the construction and naturalization of gendered characteristics regarding women such as weakness, fragility and dependency .

In the last one hundred years women have made tremendous inroads in many facets of life. Of that there can be little doubt. Women may now hold jobs, own property and participate in professional sports. Today women can compete in sports, once a vestige of male domination; there is now room for women in that arena. But even today women in sports are not portrayed in the same light as their male counterparts. To a large degree this is because of today's cultural ideal of women.