Nothing To Cheer About
The New York Post is not a subtle newspaper. They proved it today by running a doctored photo of Phillies center fielder Shane Victorino in a cheerleader’s skirt. The photo was accompanied by a headline that read:Â “Gotham trembles: The Frillies are coming to town.”
Girls, I think they’re saying that the Philadelphia Phillies are a bunch of girls. As if that were a bad thing.
Victorino, when asked by the press what he thought of the depiction, said, “It’s fun. It’s sexy. At least my legs look good.”
Of course the sports world is a place where manliness, testosterone and in-your-face attitude all come together in a heady mix that’s likely to lead to decidedly non-feminine remarks and behavior. Victorino remained demure in his remarks about the photo but some of his team mates gave sound bytes to the media in which their defense of Victorino’s masculinity seemed like an attack on men who wear dresses, or cheerleader’s skirts.
Some of the comments I heard from Phillies players on KYW radio pointed out that Victorino is not that kind of guy. Chase Utley defended his teammate with, “No, he definitely doesn’t wear a skirt. Shane’s an important part of our club, and that’s the last thing he’ll ever wear. I hope!”
The fear of skirts has raised its ugly head. Come on guys. Can we join the 21st century and stop equating the love of feminine things and the display of softness, or girliness, as a very large negative? Would it matter to the team if Victorino, or Utley for that matter, wore dresses? As long as they can still play ball it wouldn’t matter one bit. But our culture is so skewed that Yankee fans who want to keep up the trash talking tradition have to insult us while they go after the Phillies.
I’m not much of a baseball fan but I do hope the Frilly Phillies win the series, just so they can thumb their noses at the New York Post and the rabid Yankee fans who have impugned the Phillies masculinity and insulted us in the process. And, maybe one or two of the Phillies will wear a cheerleader’s skirt to their victory parade.
Category: Transgender Opinion
About the Author (Author Profile)
Angela Gardner is a founding member of The Renaissance Transgender Assoc., Inc., former editor of its newsletter and magazine, Transgender Community News. She was the Diva of Dish for TGF in the late 1990s and Editor of LadyLike magazine until its untimely demise. She has appeared in film and television shows portraying TG characters, as well as representing Renaissance on numerous talk shows.Subscribe
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