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eclair
Joined: 20 Sep 2006 Posts: 3914
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Posted: 09/11/18 8:23 pm ::: A man comes to terms with his bias |
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So, I took my friend Frank, a mega sports fan, to his first WNBA game, Mystics - Storm game 1. He had a great time and was appalled at the lack of coverage on the local sport station the next day. This is his second take, wherein he is enlightened! đ
âââââ-
After my post yesterday, I felt a little uneasy. Today, after reading some wonderful comments, I am again uneasy. Why?? I question the purpose of why I posted it. Was it just to get a few âlikesâ and affirming comments? Sure, thatâs part of it, but what are my other motives, and why am I today so uneasy about it? I think the answer is relatively simple, it is something that I have only brought to heart later in my life â itâs the saying: âYou spot it, you got it.â
Is my righteous indignation at a radio station merely a disguise for, or a reflection of, my own shortcomings?
In the comments I was asked âCan we assume sexism?â. With regards to the radio station, I donât know, but what about me?? My initial response is âOn no, thatâs not me!â. The thing about sexism, bias, prejudice and bigotry, is they often disguise themselves with perfectly reasonable sounding explanations.
For example: Have I been a supporter of the Seattle Storm from the very beginning of the franchise? No, I have not. What does a supporter mean? It means following the team, watching them play either in person or on TV, and perhaps supporting the team with my wallet in some way. So, why have I not been a supporter? If asked, I would have responded with something like, âI donât have time for another sports teamâ, or âI spend too much money on my other teams, I canât afford anotherâ. Do these explanations hold water?
Do I have time? Of course I do. I donât have to be at, or watch, every single game â I donât do that with other teams I support. I also only need look at my feelings about an NHL team coming to Seattle to know that I will definitely be a supporter of that team! And of course, the potential return of the Sonics to Seattle â thatâs a no-brainer. The other explanation of âspending too much moneyâ? Well, that is a problem entirely of my own making, and is solved with nothing more than a little prudence. Both original explanations fail the sniff test.
One explanation I have made was that the team, through many years, did not perform particularly well. Does that hold water? Of course not! I have been a faithful fan of the Seahawks and Mariners throughout years when they looked like they didnât even belong on the same field as their opponents. Did that stop me from being a fan or supporting the teams? Obviously not.
I try to come to the heart of it, through this process of âuncover, discover and discardâ. The reason for my unease, the real reason for my indignation - is my own sexism, bias and prejudice. I have found myself saying things like âThe quality of play has improvedâ â OMG, ugh! This is nothing but âcodeâ for âwomen canât play sports as well as menâ. The truth is I have felt that professional womenâs sports are ânot as good asâ professional menâs sports. In this case, reality smacked me in the face as I have watched the Storm and the WNBA play the style of hoops that I have always admired â team play, sacrifice, incredible skill, physical and mental toughness â attributes that are rarely seen in the other NBA these days. Through my own sexism, bias and prejudice, I have missed the opportunity to enjoy being part of the Storm community â that has now changed. My friend Elizabeth, who has been a supporter since day one, told me that she had wished the WNBA had chosen NBAW instead â I couldnât agree with her more.
Even more importantly than any sports team, because of the recognition that since I have sexism, bias and prejudice in sports, it certainly permeates other areas of my life - this is where the real work is needed. I need to put aside sexism, bias and prejudice in all aspects of my life. Watch for them in all their disguises, in all their excuses, in all their âexplanationsâ, and when uncovered and discovered, discard them in the way that I was taught â through guidance, through my words and through my actions. âPutting asideâ or âdiscardâ to me means taking opposite action. It is simply not good enough to stop the behavior, I must act differently. I must observe more openly, I must listen more open-mindedly, I must be more accepting of others as they are, I must give the benefit of the doubt, I must be more aware of where my shortcomings affect my behavior â and when I believe in something strongly enough, advocate for change by being the change myself.
Back to my original post â Shame on 710 ESPN? â I donât know â Shame on me? â Definitely.
_________________ Put a Bird on it.
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Bob Lamm
Joined: 11 Apr 2010 Posts: 5065 Location: New York City
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Posted: 09/11/18 8:58 pm ::: Re: A man comes to terms with his bias |
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eclair wrote: |
So, I took my friend Frank, a mega sports fan, to his first WNBA game, Mystics - Storm game 1. He had a great time and was appalled at the lack of coverage on the local sport station the next day. This is his second take, wherein he is enlightened! đ
âââââ-
After my post yesterday, I felt a little uneasy. Today, after reading some wonderful comments, I am again uneasy. Why?? I question the purpose of why I posted it. Was it just to get a few âlikesâ and affirming comments? Sure, thatâs part of it, but what are my other motives, and why am I today so uneasy about it? I think the answer is relatively simple, it is something that I have only brought to heart later in my life â itâs the saying: âYou spot it, you got it.â
Is my righteous indignation at a radio station merely a disguise for, or a reflection of, my own shortcomings?
In the comments I was asked âCan we assume sexism?â. With regards to the radio station, I donât know, but what about me?? My initial response is âOn no, thatâs not me!â. The thing about sexism, bias, prejudice and bigotry, is they often disguise themselves with perfectly reasonable sounding explanations.
For example: Have I been a supporter of the Seattle Storm from the very beginning of the franchise? No, I have not. What does a supporter mean? It means following the team, watching them play either in person or on TV, and perhaps supporting the team with my wallet in some way. So, why have I not been a supporter? If asked, I would have responded with something like, âI donât have time for another sports teamâ, or âI spend too much money on my other teams, I canât afford anotherâ. Do these explanations hold water?
Do I have time? Of course I do. I donât have to be at, or watch, every single game â I donât do that with other teams I support. I also only need look at my feelings about an NHL team coming to Seattle to know that I will definitely be a supporter of that team! And of course, the potential return of the Sonics to Seattle â thatâs a no-brainer. The other explanation of âspending too much moneyâ? Well, that is a problem entirely of my own making, and is solved with nothing more than a little prudence. Both original explanations fail the sniff test.
One explanation I have made was that the team, through many years, did not perform particularly well. Does that hold water? Of course not! I have been a faithful fan of the Seahawks and Mariners throughout years when they looked like they didnât even belong on the same field as their opponents. Did that stop me from being a fan or supporting the teams? Obviously not.
I try to come to the heart of it, through this process of âuncover, discover and discardâ. The reason for my unease, the real reason for my indignation - is my own sexism, bias and prejudice. I have found myself saying things like âThe quality of play has improvedâ â OMG, ugh! This is nothing but âcodeâ for âwomen canât play sports as well as menâ. The truth is I have felt that professional womenâs sports are ânot as good asâ professional menâs sports. In this case, reality smacked me in the face as I have watched the Storm and the WNBA play the style of hoops that I have always admired â team play, sacrifice, incredible skill, physical and mental toughness â attributes that are rarely seen in the other NBA these days. Through my own sexism, bias and prejudice, I have missed the opportunity to enjoy being part of the Storm community â that has now changed. My friend Elizabeth, who has been a supporter since day one, told me that she had wished the WNBA had chosen NBAW instead â I couldnât agree with her more.
Even more importantly than any sports team, because of the recognition that since I have sexism, bias and prejudice in sports, it certainly permeates other areas of my life - this is where the real work is needed. I need to put aside sexism, bias and prejudice in all aspects of my life. Watch for them in all their disguises, in all their excuses, in all their âexplanationsâ, and when uncovered and discovered, discard them in the way that I was taught â through guidance, through my words and through my actions. âPutting asideâ or âdiscardâ to me means taking opposite action. It is simply not good enough to stop the behavior, I must act differently. I must observe more openly, I must listen more open-mindedly, I must be more accepting of others as they are, I must give the benefit of the doubt, I must be more aware of where my shortcomings affect my behavior â and when I believe in something strongly enough, advocate for change by being the change myself.
Back to my original post â Shame on 710 ESPN? â I donât know â Shame on me? â Definitely. |
Thanks so much, eclair, for posting this. And, of course, thanks so much, Frank, for your wonderful, honest, moving statement.
_________________ Remember Roe v. Wade. Work for and support legal abortion all over the world and full reproductive rights for everyone.
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sigur3
Joined: 18 Jun 2013 Posts: 6191 Location: Chicago-ish
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Posted: 09/11/18 9:23 pm ::: |
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For some reason I thought this thread would be about that asshole radio host (?, don't really know who he is?) in Seattle who's crying over people "harassing" him about the Storm.
This is great. Thanks.
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myrtle
Joined: 02 May 2008 Posts: 32335
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Posted: 09/11/18 11:50 pm ::: |
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Yes, seeing ones own prejudices is way harder than seeing them in others. Thanks for such a thoughtful analysis.
_________________ For there is always light,
if only weâre brave enough to see it.
If only weâre brave enough to be it.
- Amanda Gorman
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Nixtreefan
Joined: 14 Nov 2012 Posts: 2539
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Posted: 09/12/18 1:28 pm ::: |
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Yep thanks for that.
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willtalk
Joined: 13 Apr 2012 Posts: 1093 Location: NorCal
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Posted: 09/12/18 1:52 pm ::: |
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Bias and prejudice takes many forms, most of which are not even recognized as such. We tend to focus on specific forms that are socially labeled as such. It is very easy to jump on the PC band wagon but less so for those not under any currant spotlight. With some real introspection we would be surprised at our own level of bias in multiple areas we were not even aware of.
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calbearman76
Joined: 02 Nov 2009 Posts: 5155 Location: Carson City
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Posted: 09/12/18 6:14 pm ::: |
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Bias is merely a negatively charged word for discernment. We all make choices in life that are based on previous history and innate factors. Speaking about bias in this regard misses the point about what are reasonable and unreasonable choices that people make in their everyday life.
The final paragraph of this person's statement shows off a guilt that I would hope few people would experience.
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Even more importantly than any sports team, because of the recognition that since I have sexism, bias and prejudice in sports, it certainly permeates other areas of my life - this is where the real work is needed. I need to put aside sexism, bias and prejudice in all aspects of my life. Watch for them in all their disguises, in all their excuses, in all their âexplanationsâ, and when uncovered and discovered, discard them in the way that I was taught â through guidance, through my words and through my actions. âPutting asideâ or âdiscardâ to me means taking opposite action. It is simply not good enough to stop the behavior, I must act differently. I must observe more openly, I must listen more open-mindedly, I must be more accepting of others as they are, I must give the benefit of the doubt, I must be more aware of where my shortcomings affect my behavior â and when I believe in something strongly enough, advocate for change by being the change myself.
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There are appropriate reasons for sexism that are a part of the wiring of humans. While it is important to understand them and to make sure you don't allow those "preconsidered thoughts" to affect certain decisions (such as hiring) where they should not be a part of the overall consideration, it is perfectly appropriate to allow them to impact your decision as to what you want to consume for your personal enjoyment. When I was in college I enjoyed viewing many Cal sports, but never once did I go to a soccer match. Does that mean I was somehow biased against soccer players (who may have been more likely to be Hispanic? And if so what does it mean that I also never went to watch rowing, at which Cal was one of the best in the nation?
I am not going to look under every rock to expose potential bias because to do so would miss the bigger picture of life. There are many areas where bias can do harm, but forcing people to root for a particular team or sport will only cause resentment and foster more, not less, ill will. I am a women's basketball fan because I truly enjoy the sport, even though I don't fit the normal mode of people that do. I will not try to second guess why I have made that choice. But as much as I would like the sport to grow in popularity I would never make someone else who has a different view be made to believe that he is wrong for not liking the sport.
He says, "'putting aside' or 'discard' to me means taking opposite action." I am not sure I even know what that means. What is the opposite action he would take? Is he saying that if he wants to go to a Seattle Mariners game then he is also obligated to go to a Storm game instead. When I went up to Seattle earlier this year specifically to see 2 Mariners games and 1 Storm game, was I somehow slighting the Storm by 1 game? Maybe I was slighting the Mariners because I only saw 2.5% of their home games but I saw 6% of the Storm's games. I suspect that both teams were just happy that I was willing to drive 1500 miles round trip to pay to sit in the stands.
Talk about prejudice where it really matters and I will be right with you, working as hard as anyone to root it out. People can opine about why women's sports aren't as popular, but I can assure you that trying to make people feel guilty about their choices is not a path towards success.
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