Is Cheerleading A Thing of The Past?
I attended a local high school football game this past Friday and sat down a with a few neighbors to chat while we watched the game. (Ok I never really watched it - I don’t like football). About midway through the second quarter, my husband commented on how few cheerleaders we had. Granted, our school district is rather small, but there were only 5 girls on the squad. I looked across the field at the opposing team from a larger school (who were slaughtering us at the time) and they had about 16 girls lined up in front of the crowd.
Being relatively new to public school, I asked my neighbor (who works at the school) if it was normal for our team to only have 5 cheerleaders. She said they actually used to have a lot more members of the cheerleading squad back when girls sports were less popular. Now that sports have opened up girls teams for golf, volleyball, soccer and basketball, more girls are concentrating on sports than cheerleading. (This is the part where someone jumps in and says “cheerleading IS a sport!” - have fun with that.) She said it seems now that cheerleading is just an activity anyone can do if they want. They don’t even hold tryouts! Wow - that is so not the way things were when I was in high school. I knew girls who would kill for those coveted pom-poms. (Not me. I was too busy making the boys basketball team. 
)
So is anyone else noticing this trend? Are girls choosing to play the game rather than cheer for it?
October 12th, 2007 at 5:19 pm
And by the way, many competitive cheerleaders don’t even have a team to cheer for like many football and basketball cheerleaders do. I had a team to cheer for, but even if I didn’t I would have done so anyways for the love of the SPORT.
October 12th, 2007 at 5:36 pm
“just because other people in the past have not been offended by certain things said does not mean that i shouldn™t be. It means that the person saying them shouldn™t in the future.”
No, that usually means that you are choosing to become offended.
And I do believe in freedom of speech. It sounds like you don’t.
“But since you all cant understand that, i will continue to use as much “classy” language that I like, lol. But for some reason I think you know that Kel. I think you™re just mad cuz i said you were on a wack-ass squad, lol. But then again, any squad that even the people on it admit that all they did was stand on the sidelines probably was a wack-ass squad, lol. Doesn™t that make sense? No sh*t Sherlock, it does!”
I actually wasn’t aware that you were telling me, personally, that you believe I was on a “wack-ass” squad. How would you know? I was in the eighth grade, for heaven’s sake, not on a college squad. Of course we just stood on the sidelines. That’s what you do in EIGHTH GRADE.
So far you’ve demeaned and insulted others on this site, which hasn’t really helped your position at all. It’s not just WHAT you say, it’s HOW you say it. And I’m sure I know what your response to that will be…lemme guess… “No sh*t Sherlock”?
Which will show your true character once again.
October 12th, 2007 at 7:21 pm
Lol my true character has nothing to do with random internet posts but thanks for caring so much
. And whether or not you feel demeaned has nothing to do with my position. But thank you again for proving my original point. If you were in the eighth grade people don’t generally take their sports as seriously as they would in high school or college, so that is not a good example of a serious squad.
Consider this: if someone who grew up in a household where the father went to work and the mother stayed and cleaned the house all day. Then that person met a working woman and said to her, “you dont need to work, your place is to stay at home and clean the house.” That person may even have said it to some other working women who didn’t get offended. Now, I realize this doesn’t mean that person was trying to offend the woman. it means they are voicing their freedom of speech. But does that mean the woman shouldn’t be offended? Maybe you think it means that person was choosing to be offended. Maybe you also think that if you are offended by something someone else says you don’t believe in free speech.
So I will say WHAT i want, HOW I want to say it. Choosing to use my freedom of speech, got it? Great! Lol. And since people say things that offend me on this site don’t be surprised that I would do the same.
October 12th, 2007 at 7:30 pm
“So I will say WHAT i want, HOW I want to say it. Choosing to use my freedom of speech, got it? Great! Lol. And since people say things that offend me on this site don™t be surprised that I would do the same.”
It’s not what you’re saying that is troubling here, imani. It’s the disrespectful tone in which you’re saying it.
And I agree with you about freedom of speech. However, I don’t think that anyone needs to change their position in order to satisfy someone else. You have every right to your opinion and position on this issue. And I don’t feel the least bit demeaned. However, it IS clear to me that your intent is to demean and belittle those who may not share your point of view.
I just believe that there is a better way to discuss this issue instead of with namecalling and rudeness.
I believe you’ve made your point on this issue crystal clear, and also let us know that anyone who disagrees with you is offensive.
October 12th, 2007 at 8:30 pm
Lol thank you for agreeing with me. I wish everyone would do the same on that because I’m right (whether you agree with the way I said it or not).
For the record though, my intent upon joining these discussions was not to belittle or demean people. Before the discussion started there may have been a better way. But when people say things that offend me I will generally go out of my way to do the same, and afterwards have no qualms about doing so.
I also don’t recall calling anyone names, but whatever.
How would you feel if there was a sport you loved and felt strongly about when you did it. And then there are random people who don’t know the first thing about it except something they did in the eighth grade, saying its not a sport just because they dont think it’s a sport? Or because of the uniform, or whatever other random, quasi-reasons you all can pull out of the air? And then actually telling me how I should react to this?
My point is, of course people who disagree with me on this issue are going to offend me! That doesn’t mean that “anyone who disagree’s with me is offensive.”
But on this particular issue, yes thats how it works.
October 12th, 2007 at 8:49 pm
One more thing i forgot to address in my earlier comment.
Lissa it’s interesting that you all of a sudden feel cheerleading is not a sport just because of the uniform, but yet in your original post you made on September 26th, 2007 2:16 pm you said
“Here is my 2 cents on the subject. I think cheerleading is a sport, especially if they have to do gymnastics too.”
October 12th, 2007 at 8:54 pm
Okay, to you I am a “random” person. Whatever that means. And I do know some things about it. I believe my comment in my first post was this:
“It™s a type of performance, in my opinion, and it is still valuable. They have amazing competitions that are televised, as well, and it takes a tremendous amount of skill to compete in something like that.”
I don’t think it’s a sport, but I never said it wasn’t valuable or something that required a great amount of skill.
I am perfectly fine when people disagree with me, but calling names like “Sherlock” (when you know that using the term “Sherlock” in that manner IS, in face, considered an insult) is just not conducive to any sort of discussion.
You’ve also said, “if your basketball team even let a girl on the then they probably weren™t that good to begin with.” And also, “I™ll even type it in caps so maybe you all will understand, lol.” And the “wack-ass” term I’ve already mentioned. And your ENTIRE biting response to Lissa…I mean, you might as well just come out and call everyone who disagrees with you “stupid,” because the way you are responding to people here implies that you think those things about them. And that’s fine if you think that, but I don’t see how the harshness of your posts is helping anything here.
It doesn’t really matter what I say, though…you will continue to argue and post derogatory things with your little “lol” after them, as if that makes it okay. But it doesn’t. I hope you’re a kinder person in reality than you are online. I’m done here.
October 12th, 2007 at 9:13 pm
LOL Im glad you’re done. I never said you didnt think cheerleading was valuable or required skill. But the fact that you don’t think its a sport is stupid to me! And I DO think everyone who disagrees with me on this issue is being stupid! I never, ever tried to hide that! And I will talk to whoever it is the same way stupid people need to hear things to get through to them.
lol i hope you don’t actually think I’m trying to appeal to you by putting “lol” in my posts. I could really care less what you think is okay. Its just something i type when i think something is funny. The harshness of my posts is not helping? Lol thats hilarious. We’re not saving the starving children in Africa or curing AIDS people. Whether i say everything like i do, or sugarcoat them so much we all get diabetes, does it really matter? Lol, no it does not.
But as far as me being a kinder person in real life? As i said before, thank you for caring so much about my “true character” but I assure you its really none of your concern, and at the end of the day I will never be measured by random internet posts. lol.
October 13th, 2007 at 11:14 am
Imani, you will be measured by your posts on this site. Why? Because that’s all we know about you. And I happen to believe that you can’t be someone else on the Internet. You are who you are and you can’t fake it. Yes, people can change, but what you see is what you get.
As for this thread, you have entirely missed the point. We were discussing whether cheerleading has been taking a back seat to women’s sports, not whether anyone else was on a “wack-ass” squad or not. And as to the way they dress. Modesty is always appropriate. Roller derby racers and runners DO NOT have to dress that way for their sport. They CHOOSE to wear those outfits. You can wear a snugly fitting uniform and still be modest.
You can call me “stupid” if you choose. I assure you I am not. And neither is Kel. And neither is Lissa.
October 13th, 2007 at 11:32 am
Lol measure away then!
Lets see how much of an impact your “measuring” will have on my life… on to something i actually care about…
YOU have entirely missed MY point. Cheerleading is not taking a back seat to womens sports because it IS a womens sport. Roller derby racers and runners DO have to dress that way IF it’s a part of their uniform just like cheerleaders do have to dress that way IF it is a part of their uniform. Some cheerleading uniforms are more modest than others. A friend of mine who cheered for a christian school, her uniform was a long sleeved top and shorts.
Modesty is always appropriate?….okay i dont know what planet you live on. But there is NO style of dress that is ALWAYS appropriate for every situation. That is why there are so many options for style of dress.
Assure away, but from what i see I beg to differ.
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