The event started out innocently enough. Last Saturday, the infamous sports editor and I saw the U of T men’s volleyball team thrash the Windsor Lancers. The Blues defeated the Lancers 3-1 through carefully crafted play and well-executed strategy.

Brendan Peel and Senan Ferrell brought excitement to the afternoon with some show-stopping kills. My interest in the game, however, was punctuated by something else entirely: the presence of the U of T Thunder Squad.

The Thunder Squad dancers are best described as hip-hop cheerleaders. The squad is athletic, well choreographed and focused. (I could never do an arabesque, let alone with a volleyball darting between my legs.) Despite being impressed by their abilities, I found myself wondering how I felt about them being there.

Why is it necessary to have a bunch of tightly clothed, lithe young women dance on display for a mostly male audience? Are we really incapable of entertaining ourselves during a 30-second timeout?

Even if we’re not, there are other ways of passing the time. Our U of T mascot is a friendly and amusing character who could keep any crowd entertained.

I am tired of hearing remarks like “Gotta love short skirts” whenever a girl is hoisted in the air at a football game.

Women no longer have to be relegated to the sidelines. Women participate in just as many sports. Their match-ups are just as exciting and as exhilarating as men’s sports.

So why the overwhelming majority of female cheerleaders? I understand that keeping audience enthusiasm is important, but why then can’t we have more male cheerleaders at sporting events?

-MR

One could always use the, “They are doing this of their own free will” argument or say that the Thunder Squad is a great example of “feminism at work.” I can understand how some people might hold these views, but I myself do not concur.

It is an excellent triumph for gender equity that women have made great strides in their fight for equality in an unequal world. As Claudette Colbert once said, “It matters more what’s in a woman’s face than what’s on it.” That is why it’s strange to see women choosing to dance provocatively to entertain a diverse crowd of men, women, and children.

The dancers probably really like their job and to entertain a crowd and probably don’t consider themselves exploited in any way. It just seems like women fought for decades against the societal notion that females could be nothing but sex objects, only to see subsequent generations choosing freely to be sexual entertainment at a male sporting event.

The media still portrays women as sex objects much more than they do men, and give females the impression that being “hot” and desirable to men is one of their main goals. Most newspapers and television channels don’t give enough attention to women’s sports or to the concept that women excel at other types of physical activities besides cheerleading, appearing half-naked in music videos, and stripping.

One outlet is trying to change that. U of T’s women’s sports teams are on par with their male counterparts and often outperform their brothers and have received-and will continue to-garner the same amount of attention that male teams do from The Varsity as long as they are in existence.

It is my belief that The Varsity provides more coverage of women in sport than any other major national newspaper on any given week. Compare this to every other sports section in the city for a few days to see for yourself.

As time goes on and women’s sports are still battling for press attention, don’t be surprised if they attempt to sex things up and sell their product to a female audience by incorporating male dancers into sporting events. Here is a bold prediction: expect to see the increased use of male cheerleaders at a professional women’s sporting event within the next five years.

-MS