Walking into my freshman-year science class, I was overwhelmed by a group of boys spouting about the superiority of male soccer athletes in comparison to female ones. “It’s just biology. Men are simply stronger than girls,” they quipped. When trying to rebut their perspective, stating that the female US soccer league has performed stronger than their male counterparts in past years, they disagreed, expressing, “Men have way harder competition than girls.” As we celebrate Women’s History Month, this language in athletics, education, and media creates a harmful and comparative environment that needs to be dismantled.
The US Women’s National Soccer Team has won four Women’s World Cup trophies, four Olympic Gold Medals, and nine CONCACAF Championships. Beyoncé has the record for holding the most Grammy Awards (32), reached number 1 on Billboards for a variety of tracks, and has performed at the Superbowl twice. The development of Wi-Fi and the discovery of the DNA structure were all achieved by women. Yet all of these academic, athletic, and artistic accomplishments are somehow always overlooked and less respected by not only the Jackson-Reed community but men globally.
For example, during the 2024 Golden Globes Award Ceremony, host Joy Koy reinforced this lack of upliftment in a joke he made targeting Taylor Swift. Instead of mentioning the extreme success she has achieved during the 2023 Eras Tour, he decided what was most notable about the musician was her recent relationship with NFL star, Travis Kelce: “The big difference between the Golden Globes and the NFL — on the Golden Globes, we have fewer camera shots of Taylor Swift.”
Instead of highlighting the hard work and grit women like Swift have demonstrated, what is received is condescension and misogyny. Their success is discredited by men’s use of comparative and insecure language.
This is apparent in discussions regarding female athletics as well. Phrases like “they are good for a girl” make female athletes feel inferior to male athletic capabilities, pushing the mentality women don’t ever seem to work hard enough. Not only is this demeaning, but the use of girl instead of woman further infantilizes women and creates the narrative that while men are mature and strong, girls are weak and incapable.
While many members of the Jackson-Reed community don’t actively partake in this sexist lingo, it is still subtly evident. Interrupting female voices in the classroom, disrespecting or making fun of female students who put effort into their education/classwork, only attending male sports events, labeling female athletics as “Lady Tigers” while male sports teams go by the default “Tiger”, and increasing attention on male opinion over the female one, are all small markers that the community at Jackson-Reed continues to favor the male voice across education and athletics.
The solution to this catastrophic cycle of misogyny requires immediate action at the root. It’s imperative to disband these ‘humorous’ yet deeply ingrained sexist attitudes that diminish the contributions of female students. When male students slide subtle yet harmful jokes, make toxic remarks, or trash the hard work and achievement of their female classmates, Jackson-Reed teachers, and peers alike, must shut down the misogynistic language. To foster a culture of respect, a deeper consideration of the impact of words on all individuals is critical.
