Anti-hazing
Paola Boivin: Decency prevails with MLB’s new policy.
If “throwing like a girl” means pitching like Mo’ne Davis, I’m all for it.
If a drill sergeant calling recruits “ladies” is a nod to Ann E. Dunwoody, the first woman to serve as a four-star general in both the Army and the U.S. armed forces, then keep it up.
We know better. Those terms are often used as pejoratives, which is why we should applaud Major League Baseball’s new Anti-Hazing and Anti-Bullying Policy, which prohibits “requiring, coercing or encouraging” players from “dressing up as women or wearing costumes that may be offensive to individuals based on their race, sex, nationality, age, sexual orientation, gender identify or other characteristic.”
The reaction by some former players has been disappointing.
“The world is full of sensitive snowflakes,” Aubrey Huff tweeted.
“BREAKING NEWS: Fans are no longer allowed to heckle players because it hurts their feelings,” Vernon Wells tweeted.
Puh-lease. Talk about missing the point.
This isn’t about sensitivity, it’s about decency. And in nobody’s world should the threat of humiliation be equated with dressing as a female. In nobody’s world should doing something “like a girl” be a sign of weakness.
It’s the language of misogyny. We’re better than that. Yet the humor blinds us of the darkness. I’m sure I have retweeted Arizona Diamondbacks rookies dressed as girls. And I regret it.
It’s not just former players having an issue with the new policy. Some media members have called it an overreaction. Many fans have turned to social media to rail against the decision, suggesting MLB is spoiling tradition.
Tradition doesn’t make it right.
Blackface makeup was a popular entertainment tool in the 19th and 20th centuries until we realized it was a horrible racist prop to make African Americans look uneducated and inferior.
The use of mascots by sports teams reflecting outdated NativeAmerican stereotypes is finally receiving the backlash it deserves, unless you sit in Daniel Snyder’s corner.
We accepted it as the norm for many years until the voices of the afflicted grew louder and educated us, thank goodness.
So why on earth do we still think it’s OK to offend 49.6% of the population?
Baseball’s policy is about more than sexism. It addresses concerns about racism and discrimination against sexual orientation.
Some have suggested MLB has become “the P.C. police,” but really? Is baseball going to suffer by limiting what rookies can wear?
Veterans are still allowed to dress them up. They’ll just have to be more thoughtful about it.
Superman, Batman? Go for it.
In nobody’s world should the threat of humiliation be equated with dressing as a female.
Boivin writes for The (Phoenix) Arizona Republic, part of the USA TODAY Network.