Micro-Aggression & Homophobia

Prior to taking this class, I was not aware of the term heteronormative oppression and how it is problematic with homophobic oppression. When I reflect on my time playing football throughout high school and the times spent in a boxing gym, there have been numerous times where heteronormative privilege/oppression and the use of microaggressions have taken place. Yet throughout my entire life related to sports, I have been oblivious to recognizing that I am part of the problem by allowing these things to continue. Thinking about everything that was discussed in class and in the article that was given, football and even the more machismo sport of boxing has instances where homophobic behavior occurs. In football, when a player is injured, players kneel, hold hands, and pray together.  In boxing, after a tough fight, the two boxers will embrace and even give a kiss on the cheek. Yet phrases like “punch like a girl” or “hit me faggot” has been thrown around multiple times in the gym, locker room, or on the field. When either of those terms were used, I have never questioned the person saying it, nor did any of my teammates or coaches. Even the person on the receiving end of the terms took it in stride and either quickly fired with a comeback or kept quiet. It is the ones who remained silent that bother me. I never thought about how destructive using those terms can be, even in the joking sense, so I contributed to all of the banter with no regard.

Research has identified that hegemonic masculinity is the norm in sporting culture (Calhoun & LaVoi, 2011; Hardin et al., 2009). Homosexuality has been used as the term to identify and represent men who abandon masculinity (Butterworth, 2006). Plummer (2009) recognizes that the language of masculinity includes terms such as “queer”, “gay,” and “faggot,” used by boys as they assimilate into masculine culture. Throughout my sporting experience, the terms are used blatantly among players and especially the coaches. The coaching staff would also use micro-aggressive slander in their methods such as “stop being a pussy” or “quit being homo”. With a person with authority such as my coaches, I never questioned against their use of those words for fear of not being able to participate. The use of these terms in these settings creates habitus and continues to marginalize a group for being different.

For this past week, I have encountered several gender micro-aggressions, and will discuss two that had the most impact. The first was with my weight training class that I instruct. One of the girls in my class was having a conversation with her friend. I do not remember what the topic was about and one of her remarks at the end of it was “that’s so gay”. I stopped for a second, trying to recall what I learned in the class the day before. I addressed the issue of using that term and how a simple word can be hurtful. She claimed she was only joking and snickered off before I could have driven the topic home. Instead of chasing her down and basically interrogate her, I left it as is in order to maintain relationships with the people in my class (basically don’t be a hard ass).

The second micro-aggression that happened was over the weekend at my friends wedding. The groom decided to have a last minute bachelor party, Hangover style, to Las Vegas the day before the wedding. Having been nicely dressed up for the night, one of the groomsmen said, “Dude, no homo, if I was gay, I would.” At the time I did not question who said it. With a roomful of alpha males, three who are active in law enforcement (one is a retired Marine), there was plenty of bravado in the room, which prevented me from calling out his actions. At the club, one of the groomsmen pointed out a same sex couple (men) dancing on the floor, and the marine friend said, “Look at these two faggots right here!” More slurs were mentioned among the group. Wanting to fit in and keep the party going, I did not bring up the subject. Also alcohol was involved and trying to have a serious conversation on the topic could have had negative consequences.

For the first situation, I feel that I made little impact on that student. The opportunity to ‘step up’ was there and I feel that I came up short. I think part of it was not being a ‘tough’ instructor or using my position of power as a tool. I have always despised authoritative figures like law enforcement or government, and strive for the opposite in a hedonistic lifestyle. Keeping everyone happy in the group was my intention so instead of stopping the student, and further discussing the issue of her use of the word, I simply let it getaway.  My second situation was even harder to address. At least with the first situation, an opportunity came up. The bachelor party is the epitome of masculinity and the six of us all grew up in a heteronormative space. I found it difficult to challenge and call out anyone from this group for fear of defending homophobia. Clearly more understanding for myself and for everyone on this topic is needed. From there, people can be better in how to engage individuals on the topic.

Reference

Butterworth, M. L. (2006). Pitchers and catchers: Mike Piazza and the discourse of gay identity in the national pastime. Journal of Sport and Social Issues, 30, 138–157.

Calhoun, A. & LaVoi, N. (2011). Framing with family: Examining online coaches’ biographies for heteronormative and heterosexist narratives. International Journal of Sport Communications, 4, 300-316.

Hardin, M., Kuehn, K., Jones, H., Genovese, J., & Balaji, M. (2009). ‘Have you got game?’ Hegemonic masculinity and neo-homophobia in U.S. newspaper sports columns. Communications, Culture, & Critique, 2(2), 182-200.

Plummer, D. (2006). Sportophobia: Why do some men avoid sport? Journal of Sport & Social Issues, 30, 122–137.