PowderPuff Sexist?

11/5/2018

Around this time of year when the air begins to get crisp, our clothes are warmer, the scholastic tradition begins, football games and homecoming are at the forefront of our minds. Our excitement, however, should be stifled a bit as there are some age-old practices that are less than savory in this progressive age.

Powderpuff, for example, is one of the most recognized acts of sexism that appear in schools across the U.S.- and we may not even realize it. The game goes that girls will play the part of football players, clad in their homemade uniforms battling the opposing grade level for victory, while boys put on a cheerleading-esque performance for nothing short of a few giggles. All in good fun, right?

What if we looked at this through a feminist lens? Allow me to remind you that feminism by definition is the idea that men and women should be given equal opportunities in society. Powderpuff suggests that men and women have roles in sports, presenting a ‘role reversal’ as though men couldn’t already become cheerleaders and women couldn’t already play football without the special permission of this event. Sounds more restricting when the rose-colored glasses are removed.

Some schools feel that they are empowering the female population when they host these events with their only concerns being that girls are more likely to get injured during the game. Take, for example, Central Valley High School who brought back their game after years of it being banned after the multiple injuries that ensued. Freshmen and senior girls played against the junior and sophomore girls whilst the sidelines filled with "manleaders" according to The Spokesman-Review

Take that title alone: manleaders. This completely isolates male and female involvement in the sport of cheerleading. It implies the idea that cheering on a team is too feminine to fit the demographic involved- therefore they must be labeled something arbitrary. Although their game was for a good cause - profits and school involvement benefited a food drive- the effects on the school's society are negative, and they could be in Hilton as well.

We live in a world where we don't always view the past as gloriously as we might have used to. Racism, sexism, and homophobia aren't as widely disregarded as they used to be. We’re recognizing what equity and inclusion really mean and truly pushing our society to be more equal for all. In high school, students are at such an influential age and should be taught that powderpuff is an acceptance of sexism.

To put men and women in boxes of what they should be at a young age, and then to say that one night a year they get to break that box in some, I dare say, comical celebration is backward logic. North Star News makes an observation about the nature of the game by saying, “the fact that it is a novelty, that the notion that girls might participate in contact sports with other girls is somehow absurd and ‘cute’.” They continue by bringing up the point that although football is a co-ed sport, girls joining in the game is seen as a joke. This is a pre-disposition makes powderpuff all the more a laughing matter. Even from a student’s perspective, the occasion is nicknamed ‘a glorified catfight’ by students across all demographics. This only tears down the chances of female involvement in “masculine” sports even more.

We should be learning from history, not repeating it. Men and women should have equal opportunities apart from the one night powderpuff allows through school activities. As a community, it is our duty to call out this blatant misogyny and injustice to society.

Works Cited

Lavengood, Maggie. “When Push Come to Shove Powderpuff Football Is Rooted in Sexism.” North Star News, Niles North High School, 10 Oct. 2017,

northstarnews.org/24504/opinion/when-push-come-to-shove-powderpuff-football-is-rooted-in-sexism/.

Lawrence-Turner, Jody. “Some Schools Still Offer Girls' Football Tradition.” Spokesman.com, The Spokesman-Review, 18 Oct. 2010, www.spokesman.com/stories/2010/oct/16/puff-power/.