Fansided

Nine times female sports fan engagement was condescending and sexist

By Dani Bostick

Apr 18, 2016; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Dallas Mavericks center Salah Mejri (50) and Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban celebrate after defeating the Oklahoma City Thunder 85-84 in game two of the first round of the NBA Playoffs at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 18, 2016; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Dallas Mavericks center Salah Mejri (50) and Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban celebrate after defeating the Oklahoma City Thunder 85-84 in game two of the first round of the NBA Playoffs at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
7 of 11
Next
Oct 12, 2014; Oakland, CA, USA; General view of the O.co Coliseum with the pink breast cancer awareness logo on the field before the NFL game between the San Diego Chargers and the Oakland Raiders. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 12, 2014; Oakland, CA, USA; General view of the O.co Coliseum with the pink breast cancer awareness logo on the field before the NFL game between the San Diego Chargers and the Oakland Raiders. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports /

4. NFL’s October Breast Cancer Awareness

Pittsburgh Steelers backup running back DeAngelo Williams raises awareness for breast cancer everyday, not just four Sundays in October. His dreadlocks are perpetually pink in honor of his mother and other close relatives he has lost to breast cancer. Incidentally, representatives from his former NFL team, the Carolina Panthers — outside of Coach Rivera and Dave Gettleman — did not support him after her death. He shared, via Sports Illustrated, “Nobody came to the funeral. The owner didn’t reach out. He didn’t say anything. Never talked to me.”

What does the NFL do? Basically, they use breast cancer as a way to appear to care about women in one of the biggest marketing gimmicks in pro sports. Players wear pink.

Last year, several players learned the hard way that they could not wear purple to raise awareness for domestic violence, which the CDC calls a public health problem.  William Gay, whose mother was shot dead by his stepfather, ended up fined $5,787 for wearing unauthorized purple cleats. At the time, he explained:

"When I wore those purple cleats, I was standing for something much larger than a football game. October is Domestic Violence awareness month, and purple is the official color for the cause… People were talking about what I did, but in doing so, they were talking about domestic violence. The discussion grew louder. Domestic violence, an often uncomfortable and neglected issue in our culture, was brought to the attention of thousands."

Meanwhile, the NFL’s Pink October contributes very little to the fight against breast cancer. In 2014, six years after they started their partnership with the American Cancer Society, they had only donated an average of $1.1 million to the cause, less than .01% of their revenue, according to Vice Sports.

By NFL logic, women like pink and hate breast cancer. Making athletes wear pink and parading survivors out on the field for a paltry $1.1 million in yearly fundraising, is more of a condescending attempt at female fan engagement than meaningful social action.

Next: 3. Dallas Mavericks NBA 101 Experience

Home/NFL