KRLS 104 Midterm 2 notes

Stratification: How race and ethnicity play roles in shaping social relations and broader power relations. Similarity and difference

Our views of ourselves change over time and from the perspective of others

Sport and activity shape, reinforce, and challenge our understanding of racial and ethnic identities.

Sport for Refugees and immigrants

• safe and inclusive to support newcomers

• reinforces their racial and ethnic identities and their enjoyment as they go through challenging resettlement processes

Stratification: unequal power relations

Race: Socially constructed distinctions between groups of people based on physical and genetic characteristics

Ethnicity: Socially constructed cultural characteristics that hold groups together and assist others in recognizing them as separate

Canada is a settler-colonial state

• Indigenous people

• slavery and anti-black racism

• Bilingualism: 1867 Canada act and 1988 Official Languages Act: equal language rights between anglophones and francophones

• Multiculturalism: 1988 Canadian multiculturalism act preserves cultural identity and belonging for newcomers

Unequal race and ethnic relations

• Race and ethnic relations changed over time as Canadian structure society has changed

• there is persistent unequal treatment in society and sport

• Hegemonic power relations change very slowly

• race and ethnic relations along individual and structural lines through critical social theories

• sport can resist by athletes who were celebs to draw attention to political issues

Race and Ethnic relations

• individuals act in relation to others (social ties between individuals and groups)

• using social relations and historical hierarchies, rules are made based on how things work and how they are distributed)

  • becomes power relations

• Race and ethnic power relations

  • Ability to structure sport

  • establish sporting traditions

  • define legitimate meanings and practices

1913 Amateur Athletic Association of Canada banned black Canadians

1920s Black Canadians were banned from swimming pools

• black sports clubs were created as sanctuary spaces

Democratizing sport: work to be done beyond “easy inclusion”

• Democratized sport environment: right to participate and right to be involved in determination of the forms, circumstances, and meanings of participation (DISTRIBUTUON OF RESOURCES AND POWER)

• Expansion of equality of opportunity in most sports, some coaching, but not leadership positions.

Non Whitestream sport systems

• racial and ethnic minority groups exercise agency

  • shape their preferred sporting opportunities

  • creates safe spaces to preserve their cultures

  • First gen immigrants played Bandy, cricket, hurling

  • Convergence of once segregated sports teams and system with suicide bridging opportunities (ex. north American institutional volleyball tournament)

Sporting clubs as ethnic institutions

• social and sanctuary where ethnic identity is produced and maintained over time

Ethnic sport associations: Powerful sites for people to reinforce their ethnic, racial heritage and create new relations through blended teams. “Social bridging with free agents “

Sport can also amplify political, ethnic, and sectarian identities (being narrow minded)

North American indigenous games

• created in response to racial inequality in sport and in society

• participation restricted to only indigenous ppl

• more power for indigenous people to control structures, traditions, cultural meanings, and resources

THIS IS NOT RACISM according to the charter of rights and freedoms

• individuals disadvantaged due to race are necessary to provide equality rights and correct imbalance created by unequal privilege in first place

Sport and social inclusion: Tensions and contradictions

• Post war, athletes have found acceptance in Canada than US

• 1980 human rights legislation addresses racial and ethnic discrimination (however some still remains)

• Difference in ethnic and racial value systems:

  • role models appeal of certain sports (taste and symbolic capital)

  • barriers to non-anglophones: Poverty, discrimination, lack of access to training and education, language barriers, generational differences (education and cultural capital impacts sports participation roles)

  • influences sports participation, especially for different genders

Critical race theory:

• Type of critical social theory focused on race and racism in sport and society

• challenges dominant conventions of meritocracy

• focus on social justice and anti-racism: structural change and democratization in sport and beyond

• transdisciplinary focus on race and racism

Racism is 2 parts:

• interpersonal: racial slurs, hate crimes, microagressions)

• structural/systemic racism: hierarchical structure where certain groups have way more power than others

• involved in the distribution of wealth, housing ownership, health, education attainment, etc

History of Critical race theory

• race is a social construct and hierarchy

• from colonization in the 16th and 17th centuries

• gave colonizers reason to be superior

• normalized whiteness

• Race classification systems vary between culture

  • in the US, one drop of black blood = black

• British North American Act (1897)- identified indians as a race to justify colonization and genocide

Indigenous people and sport

Truth and reconciliation findings: Canadian history assimilates and subjugation of indigenous cultural practices and spiritual beliefs

• sport was a way to assimilate indigenous people (oppression) , but also was a source of fun in residential schools

• sports mascots spur social change

• sport used to promote reconciliation

• Creation of indigenous sports leagues, teams and tournaments (for DEMOCRAZIATION)

Truth and reconciliation actions

• give public education that tells national story of aboriginal athletes in history

• ensure long term athlete development and growth, and supporting aboriginal games and funding them

• reduce barriers to sports participation, increase pursuit of excellence in sport

• National sport policies, programs, and initiatives are inclusive to aboriginal people

• officials and hosts must ensure indigenous peoples territorial protocols are respected, and local indigenous communities are involved in the planning process of such events
  

Indigenous athletes:

Herb Carnegie

• canada sport hall of fame

• Queen’s golden jubilee medal

There are structures of inequality within and outside hockey

1. economic inequality/social class: equality of condition and the costly hockey season

2. racial inequality: Interpersonal racism within hockey and structural racism in society that contributes to marginalized economic positions of minority Canadians

we need to develop policies to make hocket culture anti racist by:

• acknowledging racism

• actively seek to identify, remove, prevent,

• mitigate racially inequitable outcomes and power imbalance between groups that sustain inequalities

Methods of helping racism in sport:

• promo and celebration of diversity in media (now happening)

• subsidized equipment and team fees (much needed)

• count, report, and address racist incidents (slowly starting)

• anti-raicst training and certification (much needed)

• embrace and adopt TRC calls to action (much needed)

Sex, gender, and sexuality

Gender ideology:

• dominant set of interrelated ideas about masculinity and femininity

  • “common sense beliefs and codes of behaviour about maleness and femaleness (produces social relations between men and women)

    • ex. how we are supposed to behave

• manifested by men and women giving meaning to their social life, rules, and resources (social relations become POWER RELATIONS)

• socially constructed (not natural)

• gender ideology in sport and physical culture:

  • BYCYCLE CRAZE:

    • attitudes changed, women had more freedom and mobility

    • change to clothing

    • Tour de France (for women) 8 day race

Sex vs gender

Sex: classification based on reproductive capabilities (institutionalized)

• Central to how we perceive other people and ourselves (he/him)

Gender: taught/learned from social constructions and cultural expectations about behavior, attitude, and bodies. Imposed on people based on their physical sex

Sex and gender system

• sex is transformed into gender (from cultural and historical processes)

• historically granted men with more power

  • patriarchy: men > women from institutionalized structures and practices

  • gender norms

• makes men and women mesh into a system

Heteronormativity: privileging heterosexuality in social institutions

Sport + sex gender system

• sport= masculine

• boys are taught to have a physical presence that speaks of latent power

• women are regarded as physiologically unfit

• Gender gap in sport has still increased

1. Sport is historically a male preserve

• high performance sport is being gradually democratized

1. Historical focus on separation of men and women to ensure fairness (biological advantages)

• many more mixed opportunities (children teams, new events, new mixed teams)

Hegemonic masculinity: idealized dominant masculinity with broad acceptance operating as common sense

• one of many models of masculinity that exist

• treated women and men lesser ( more dominant is more respected)

• ex. Jock insurance: sport is used to prove masculinity and protects from homophobic bullying

• Men’s professional sport = defined hegemonic masculinity in Canadian society (with media coverage, marketing accolades, etc)

• there are many versions of masculinity in sport and society

  • alternatives rarely have the same coverage and accolades

Persons Case: October 18, 1929

• Constitutional ruling in favor of women to be named to Canada senate

• according to the 1867 British North America case, women were not people (Supreme court agreed in 1927)

• “Famous five” (women who wanted rights) led by Emily Murphy appealed to Privy Council of England, who overturned the Supreme courts decision

Sex and gender differences in sport

• Sport typing: Gendered ideology that promotes some sports more appropriate for one sex than the other

• boys and girls are socialized into different sports

• boys have more appropriate and culturally valued sports

• Still challenging for men who want to play “feminine sports” (cause of hegemonic masculinity)

• women challenged ideology of weakness to men

  • However there are still some ideological beliefs in gender based rules

  • ex. tennis has 5 sets for men vs 3 sets for women

  • change is slow

The Feminine Apologetic

• Women often need to emphasize their femininity and heterosexuality in sports

• stigma against strong women who broke gender barriers by being too manly

• appearance and clothing is policized

Sex testing: policing women’s bodies

• sex testing introduced at the 1966 Euro Athletics Championships

• forced to do visual inspection by 3 gynecologists

• because of sex segregation and fear of manly women competing against “real women”

• in 1968, chromosome tests for women to receive a femininity card

  • many false results (20% error)

• sex testing discontinued in 1999, but IOC still did random ass tests

  • now tests are to identify intersex or naturally high levels of testosterone

Case study of sex testing: Caster Semenya

• Semenya’s body naturally produces excessive amounts of testosterone

• had to take a sex test in 2009

• she passed and won some

• 2018: new IAAF rule prevents women all women with high testosterone levels from entering certain races unless they take meds to lower testosterone

• Appealed through courts, European court of human rights rules in her favor, the IAAF’s rules are discriminatory

Transgender Athletes: the IOC

Stockholm Consensus: Trans athletes can compete under strict conditions

• change sex legally and surgically (take hormones for 2 years to align with their gender identities

• privileged athletes from countries where surgery is available, recognized, and who are interested in surgery

2015 OIC ruled that trans athletes can compete without sex assignment surgery

• female to male: can take part in mens competitions without restriction

• male to female: demonstrate testosterone levels below cutoff point for at least one year pre comp.

new IOC Guidelines: 2021

• Presumption that trans women have an automatic advantage over natural women

• IOC leaves it up to each sport to decide rules around inclusion

World Athletics did not change its rules, which requires athletes with a Difference of Sexual Development (DSD) to lower their testosterone to under 5 n/mol to complete in distances between 400m-mile

FINA policy: rules, power regulations

FNA: water sports governing body

• requires trans women to complete transitions by the age of 12 to compete in women categories

• if trans women experienced puberty as a male, FINA decided they MAY have an advantage

• created an open category for trans women to participate in some events (but no entries thus far)

Political pushback

• What counts as scientific evidence (FNA hasnt released their evidence for trans athletes)

• who has power in these debates

LGBTQIA2+ sporting events

• Gay Games (founded by Tom Waddell) and Canada Cup

• democratization: events are controlled and organized by LGBTQ ppl

• open to all athletes despite sexual orientation

Youth sport and Physical Culture

Youth sport: socialization

Young people adapt to norms, dominant ideologies, values, and customs through an interactive cultural process that children learn and sometimes resist

• children are socialized into and through sport

• connect personal experiences to social/historical structures

Prolympism: Power and expansion

Convergence of 2 former separate elite sports systems: professional and amateur Olympic sport

• dominant structure of high performance sport institutionalized as a mode of athlete production

• Pyramid of athlete development: Feeder system where children learn to labor to produce value for organization

  • child athletic workers become more intertwined with the system, and they become more internalized its values (habitus)

• It is so ideology elitist and achievement oriented, and purposely meritocratic (based on ability and talent)

Prolympism + Goal rational action

Ideology of winning at any cost

• ethical issues focusing on competition and elite development

• increasing amounts of resources and copious amts of labor: time

• often does not follow child violation laws

• GRA: downplays fun, lifelong physical movement/physical literacy, and personal development

Ideology of specialization

• Special labor: Sport specific and positional as young as 5 years of age

• can be beneficial where some sports where peak performance occurs in adolescence (women gymnastics)

• youth sport increasingly becoming specialized labor

Parental influence and pressure develop capital in sport and beyond.

• Scholarships, professional: diminutive odds

• increasing incidents involving a minority of parents

• sport is more political than ever- pressure for children to receive more playing time, visibility: lobbying, special financing

ongoing concerns bout coaching and power relations

• National coaching certification program (NCCP) established in 1975: tremendous impact on structure of youth sport and improvement in quality and consistency of coaching,

  • issues: abusive coaching, coach-player relationships, sexual harassment

Dropout, withdrawal, mental health issues: predictable response?

• burnout, injury,

Costly prolympic system and transformation of youth sport

“tiger woods phenomenon”: sees children as adults in training and investments

Trends: Alternate options

• push for more understandings of physical literacy and well-being: lifelong skill development, confidence, and fun

  • less competitive and specialized, less costly, more opportunities

• Alternate youth sport: unstructured, participant controlled

  • more democratized, resistant,

more focus on safe sport policies, promoting holistic health and well-being of participants and prevention of maltreatment

Case of Maple Leaf Gardens 1969-1988

• 3 Maple Leaf Gardens employees lured young boys into the place and sexually assaulted them

• Kruze, who came forward with the case, comitted suicide

Case of Graham James

• junior hockey coach that was convicted of sexual abuse with 2 former players

• ppl knew the abuse was going on but did nothing

Theoren Fleury

• NHL player that was abused by James

Coach-athlete power relations

• coaches have more power

• male coaches are most likely

Maltreatment: abuse and neglect to children under 18

• sports organizations are very slow to respond to maltreatment

Cortisone shots, painkillers, supplements, and technological enhancements are encouraged and rewarded.

• Smelling salts boost performance!

Deviant dance

• how are ideas and ideologies about what constituties “deviant” activites socially constructed

  • How do social realtions create rules? who creates them? how is power democracized (or not)

  • how did common sense become normalized

Sociological research

• Sport and physical culture are viewed as separate worlds, but with different rules (tolerable deviance)

• research explored the gorups, institutions, and agencies to distribute resources and power to create rules

• Connected to broader struggles around idenitity (gender/race) thru stigma (Erving Goffman)

  • ex of stigmas: sex testing, pathology of fatness, disabled bodies

Paralympic games:

• started in 1960, 1989: found a comiitee as the global governing body of paralympic movement

• sport canada provides funding for committee

• Athletics Canada cant evaluate the value of a paralympic medal-thinking it is easier to win a paralympic medal than an olympic medal. That is not the case anymore

• paralympic athletes are often the last to get funding and first to have it removed

Earl sociological research: Easy inclusion, little integration

• inital inclusion in high performance sport did not much to help inequities

  • funding, media coverage, awards

• able-bodied broadcasters often dont know rules

• athletes are promoted as inspirational

• emphasis placed on disabled individuals overcoming obstacles/social structures rather than focusing on changing those structures

Dr. Danielle Peers

• Did research on classification systems in parathletics

• athletes are grouped based on nature and extent of disabilities through a complex point system to ensure EQUALITY OF CONDITION

Positive deviance: deviance from overcompensation ex. win at all costs

• leads to abuse of athletes

Drug use and moral panic in sport

• doping made the maintenence of amateurism and class realtions a moral panic

  • amateur class was dissapearing, pro sport becoming oversaturated

• 1990: moral condemming for doping

• 1930: published ocncerns for doping which was leading to growth of pro sport and less amateur

• 1960: growing concerns about state sponsored sport systems in cold war, professionalism ascends

• 1968: IOC introduces doping definition and begins random testing

• Prolympic sport rewards most calculated means towards achoeveing a particular end

  • get good → win at all costs

• concerns about drug use

  • want to protect the image of sport (a meritocracy)

  • preserve image of sports equality of condition

• There was no protection against the clean athletes of Russia

  • athletes union created to let atheltes more involved in the decisions

  • how do we alter prolympism while ensuring equality of condition

    • athlete involvement in decisions

    • broader discussion of health, wellbring, injuries

    • drug use is only one inequality

Russian doping

• state sponsored doping system

• IOC suspended russian olympic comittee from olympics, but let atheletes with a clean history compete under olympic flag

  • russia was reinstated despite failing 2 drug tests