And they probably get 100 applicants for every job opening. Oppression?
13
“dozens of others in interviews with The New York Times described a hostile work environment in which they were used as sex symbols for male fans.”
Huh? Absurd. The very purpose of a football cheerleader is to be used as a sex symbol for male fans.
30
Really!? I’m shocked.
7
As depressing as these stories are, I am waiting for the NY Times to cover stories on how College athletic departments uses young collegiate women as "hostesses" and "cheer leaders" in their recruitment process and donor appeasment. For example, from the Washington Post last year - "Baylor rape scandal involves recruiting 'hostess' Program. These things still exist?".
13
Just how many more times will the NFL be shooting themselves in the foot?
8
And Jerry Jones who says keep religion out of football, the sex and violence you sell, NFL, is precisely what America's "religion" is about.
4
Are we really supposed to feel sorry for these women?
21
No matter how they couch their response male sports teams and their owners need to put a stop to their misogynistic promotion and treatment of women.
6
Were these women forced to do this?
10
The players are not exactly paragons of virtue. Football is a Roman gladiator-like spectacle with millionaire brutes and raw sex. It is the disgrace of all sports.
6
I don't get it -- why is the New York Times trying to legitimize an obviously exploitative industry like modeling that represents little more than packing women's appearance and sexuality to sell products? The exploitation of these women began when they were convinced that their appearance and their bodies were something they should sell as "models", whether it was for clothing or for something else.
That being said, if a woman thinks she can make money selling her looks, body and sexual image, then she should be free to make that choice. But they shouldn't really complain about the terms of the deal after the fact. There's no room for naivete in such a career choice.
If the NFL was hiring marketing grads from college and then handing them a cheerleader outfit and telling them to go mingle with fans, I would be more sympathetic. But these are women who already have likely fended off jobs involving porn and other less seemly modeling "offers" -- they knew what they were being hired for, and they could have avoided to try to get an assignment selling winter coats for Target or something less exploitative than wearing a skimpy outfit in front of fans.
The NFL is a sleazy organization, but selling these women as guileless ingenues is pretty hard to swallow.
24
Exploitation is the name of the game. Women, immigrants, the poor, the disenfranchised. The NFL is a pro. Boycott the NFL!
4
Wow, model-pretty women as bait? This is disgusting.
It's 2018, NFL. How about you stop this demeaning and disgusting practice? If the fans aren't having a good time, 1) too bad, 2) maybe you buy them a beer instead of offering them women?
I never cared for sports, always found (US) football barbaric. This just confirms it.
7
Yet another justification to my complete dismissal of sports fandom.
8
Many of the comments on this article are focused on why women would take jobs like this. My question is why are suite-buyers participating in, and apparently welcoming, the objectification of women? Are we just to accept that it is "natural" for men to want scantily-clad women to be paid to wait on them? I may be naive, but the men in my family would never be on board with this. They treat women like human beings, not like objects. We watch cycling together and even they are ready to get rid of the "podium girls." The blame here isn't on the women taking the jobs - it's on the men in the suites and the stands who participate in this.
13
Yes the women 'sign up' for the job, so why do they complain? Maybe they are young and naive enough to be surprised when they learn on the job that women are routinely treated as objects and are underpaid. Maybe they were naively hoping for better treatment. Maybe as they were going through the application process no one told them 'we are going to treat you badly and no one cares if you get groped, etc'....in fact they are manipulated into believing this is a step toward the better job of being a 'real' cheerleader. It also seems the women want to be part of the community, participating in charity and other events as team representatives.
The NFL ought to be ashamed. I hope these articles shame them into immediately raising these women's pay, provide protection and security from drunken gropers, and improve conditions overall for them.
14
It seems that no one held a gun to their heads when they took this job, nor did so to make them stick with it. It was, to use a commonly used phrase, consensual.
It's certainly a sleazy and smarmy business practice, but it doesn't seem illegal nor, in fact, even improper.
Just slimy.
2
Give it a rest. She worked more than a decade. Shocked.
6
Of course not a peep of protest from the #MeToo crowd.
That would require them to finally admit that sexual harassment never happens in a vacuum, especially a woman decides to degrade herself by playing the role of a sex object.
5
Cheerleaders and the others who take these 'jobs' know what they are selling. Boo hoo. I've not an ounce of sympathy for these vapid women, none. Don't want the harassment, humiliation and low pay, then don't sign up for these 'jobs'.
Get a different job, stay in school and get a good education, whatever.
13
Simple solution. Don’t take the rotten, low paying job.
You’re welcome
12
Perhaps as team "owners", they feel they own these women as well?
1
There's nothing wrong with being a cheerleader. I think President Bush 43 was a cheerleader at Yale.
1
The woman in the photo is wearing super tight jeans and stilettos. I’m sorry folks; I grew up in Vegas.
Reminds me of something my mom said in the 70’s: ‘You catch more flies with honey.’ Even at 10...I was appalled.
NFL is full of flies. Suggest wearing more bug repellent than honey.
8
What's the motive for an attractive woman to take a $7.25 an hour job that requires her to endure humiliation week after week? It certainly isn't the wages. Even more to the point, once they experience the leering, groping drunken fans, what keeps them from simply walking off? Certainly each and every one of them can do much better in the job market than minimum wage.
Sadly, some women beg to be objectified. Many girls are trained from early childhood to crave men's sexual attention. Recall Jon Benet. They are conditioned to derive gratification from being ogled. Just look at any girls' magazine. The archetype hypersexualized teenage girl, so tempting but just out of reach, dominates our culture. It's a pathology.
You need look no further that the photo at the top of this article. Jackie Chambers no longer works in football, but she felt compelled to turn out for a park bench photo shoot in skin tight jeans and stiletto heels (I assume the Times photographer didn't require her to).
Praise your daughters not for looks but for skills, for brains, for talent, for intellect, for intense curiosity and fierce determination. Unless you are preparing them for careers as eye candy.
8
Parading around drunken men who are already hyperactive from the watching a sporting event in a skimpy and suggestive outfit and these women are shocked at the response they get?
Here we go again folks; Feminism wanting to vilify and criminalize male sexuality. The solution here is for women to act with common sense and make an obvious decision. If you don't want the low pay, catcalls, pinching, and fanny slaps, don't work there doing that job.
If feminists want to get rid of those jobs that objectify women and subject them to offensive and/or abusive treatment then boycott them. Take some ownership when you known aforehand of the consequences of your decisions.
4
Remember that these women voluntarily sign up.
4
am I suppossed to be sad for these women. They've never had to buy a drink in their lives or ask a man out. They're in a situation where they can meet a wealthy guy and get married and divorce well if they play the man correctly. Marla Maples did but Stormy did not for one example
9
A side of beef gets treated better than these women.
3
Today is one of the tightest labor markets in modern history. Darn near everyone can take an entry level job because they want it, not because they are forced into it. If these women don’t want this minimum wage job, they have countless other choices, many which pay more than minimum wage. The Times just can’t stop blaming the employer for every liberal injustice they invent.
7
It seems to me that a cheerleaders union might work wonders to end this thinly vailed system of workers abuse by the NFL teams.
Cheerleading at the high school and collegiate level is highly athletic, requiring very advanced tumbling skills. It's a sanctioned sport in most state high school sports associations. What's wrong with the NFL? Why do they insist on having Hooters on the sideline, and apparently in the luxury boxes as well? And for God's sake, at least pay the girls some money. $7.25 an hour to be leered at and pawed over? Talk about exploitation.
9
Ummmm. Quit? This stuff is preposterously paternalizing. Are women not capable of deciding what jobs they want to do?
12
All it will take to start killing off these misogynist programs is for several of these "cheerleaders" to secretly film the shenanigans in private boxes and post them online to embarass the culprits and the organization itself.
2
...she was eager to interact with the community, especially with charities...
Oh come on. Just go volunteer at a soup kitchen
8
Without any shred of doubt the misogynistic NFL and it’s college football farm teams are the most reprehensible of athletic organizations. Except for the Olympics with the sex abuse scandals and organized doping. And FIFA.
2
Correct me if I am wrong. These ladies applied for these jobs didn't they?
4
Time for the cheerleaders to take a knee when they play the national anthem. Highlight the sexist and unfair working conditions.
Then the players could join them and see the owners, and Trump, really squirm.
2
These women are hostesses and entertainers and should receive pay commensurate with the job they are required to do. They should not have to put up with abuse and harassment from the rubes.
And, if they take a knee during the national anthem, they're outta here.
You know, you don't have to take this job. No one does.
6
What is most conspicuous in the football industry, which somehow manages to get free advertising on TV and in the newspapers as "Sports News" and not a business, is legion in businesses with products to promote. College women are recruited by the financial industry not because of any business training or acumen, but to interface with a male customers. At my male doctor's office, representatives from drug companies routinely show up to promote products, leave off samples, with lunch or birthday cakes. They look like cheerleaders, and have no discernible expertise in what they are peddling. Stewardesses (remember that word?) used to have to look like models, and behave flirtatiously. Remember "Fly me!" This is a business model. What isn't, and should not be, is any implied contract that these "representatives" are sexually available, or should allow themselves to be treated that way.
4
Tsk, tsk. Such judgmental comments! Take a look at how the waitresses, cocktail waitresses, servers are dressed the next time you visit your local bar, nightclub, high-end restaurant. Bright red lipstick, bright red, purple nail polish, spike heels...and inquire what their hourly wage is. At least some of these places offer ‘eye candy’ hunks for their female customers- equal opportunity in taking advantage of those needing a second, third job, financing education, etc.
The sad part is what these women have to put up with- much like what cocktail waitresses had to face back in the sixties,seventies. How pathetic it makes the team owners, those box purchasers look.
1
"...and dozens of others in interviews with The New York Times described a hostile work environment in which they were used as sex symbols for male fans."
No! Sex symbols for male fans? Who knew? The prudish costumes. The staid dance moves. The calendars featuring pictures of the women in conservative work attire. How could anyone joining an NFL cheerleading squad expect to be a sex symbol?
6
Whatever. Can we please focus on worldly issues?
7
I just checked it. Presidents FDR, Eisenhower, Reagan and Bush 43 were all cheerleaders. What's wrong with being a cheerleader?
1
"cheerleader promotional models"
So that's what they're calling them...suppose it does free 'em from pandering charges.
Billionaire team owners are paying these women as little as $7.25 an hour. This is shameful and unforgivable. The NFL doesn't deserve my patronage.
4
Wow, that video on the Redskin's site the article links to is really an awful piece of work. Besides being terribly amateurish, it could have been produced in the 50's in Mississippi. The NFL clearly has an image issue, it appears to be run like a backwater plantation from a much earlier and sadder time.
3
If the job conditions are as degrading as described in this article (and, this being the NYT in which every story is permeated by a politically correct agenda, I have my doubts), then these women have an easy solution: Go find a different job. If they were being paid big money in high-powered executive positions, you might legitimately question how viable an option that is. But, at least according to this report, they are being paid minimum wage, or close to it. Every one of these women could easily find an alterative position paying at least as much, if not more. So the fact that they don’t establishes that those who remain must find the benefits of the job outweigh the drawbacks. That’s the beauty of a free market system; you have the liberty to choose. What’s next for the NYT-- an expose exposing the scandal that models are, by in large, chosen based upon their looks and that it’s been alleged men are not discouraged from viewing attractive female models when doing so promotes certain brands which in turn leads to increased corporate profits? I’m shocked!
3
Less ubiquitous and less attractive as well.
My humble advice to these ladies: if you don’t like the job, quit.
3
It seems incredible and unfortunate to me that in the year 2018, high school girls (and in some cases even younger), as part of a school-organized and school-sponsored activity, dress up in skimpy outfits designed to titillate males. And for the purpose of hero-worshipping male athletes.
What message does that send to young females about the value they bring to this world? And what message does it send to the male non-athletes and non-alphas about their own desirability to the opposite sex?
Get rid of the cheerleading culture in the high schools, or at least de-sexualize it, and in time you'll see it disappear from the professional ranks as well. Women who enjoy dancing and would like to showcase that talent in front of an audience have plenty of other outlets by which to do so in which they won't be objectified, harassed, or humiliated.
5
I used to think the NFL was just tawdry entertainment just one step above ‘pro’ wrestling. I now realize I can drop the modifier.
2
To use the euphemism ambassador for sexualized and objectified women working to please men in the stands is ludicrous. I doubt any ambassador had to provide bust measurements or parade in a bikini to be chosen for the position.
I felt like I was back in the Mad Men days reading what the women were required to do for a little over $7an hour. Football is a male-dominated industry and I am hoping it will cease and desist its objectification of women. These teams have turned the stands into the Playboy Mansion and the women are subjected to indecent behavior to keep the fans happy. Being subjected to groping at tailgate parties has nothing to do with ambassadorship and everything to do with the idea of women as playthings for men.
Women have always been used and sexualized to sell products because men have been calling the shots. It has to stop and women must never allow themselves to be debased. The rules of the game must change and the time is right for this to happen. Nondisclosure agreements are a problem because they silence the women and allow the men in charge to continue to debase and degrade them. That, too, has to stop.
This mistreatment of women has now been exposed. The team leadership must step up to the plate and do what is right. They will have to figure out a way to sell tickets without having scantily clad women whom men feel free to grope.
5
This is not "glamorous". It is embarrassing that women think so little of themselves. I've watched these "cheerleaders" up close at Bucks games and just cringe. It is also not remotely family friendly, which pro sports claim to want to be.
1
A minimum wage job that many who aspire to claim is demeaning and sexist. Whether your one of the bozo's who enjoy this kind of entertainment or not, I do have some difficulty feeling sorry for the women who choose to seek and retain these jobs. They are most certainly hoping for some kind of break through and are apparently content to use their attractiveness to achieve that. For all those who want to blame the NFL (who aren't to blame) or the teams who employ these women, I'd suggest it's a free country and no one is breaking the law by hiring for and filling these positions.
2
This work environment is deplorable, but these ladies can surely find other jobs that pay minimum wage or better.
2
The solution to this is simple. Watch Australian Rules Football instead. Aussie Rules, is fun, fast, violent (in a restrained way!) and great to watch. Everything that the very boring american football is not. And because the AFL is exciting to watch we dont have cheerleaders and all this other guff thats required to fill stadiums where american football is played.
2
NFL, this lifelong sports fan is done with you. Not because of the amazing and dedicated athletes who put their health at risk and who are being vilified for respectfully calling attention to a real and ongoing issue of racial injustice and police brutality. It is because of the business practices of a greedy ownership that constantly displays all the morals of an antebellum plantation owner.
5
As long as there are women willing to do these jobs nothing will change.
5
This is a story about money and how women are being taken advantage of. I have no issues with regular cheerleaders on the football field but they should be paid MUCH more a year. The cheerleaders get screen time on TV, right? So, at least $100,000/ year each at a minimum. But this cheerleader as escort scheme for $7.25 an hour is truly beyond the pale. How do these teams get away with it? Their 'owner' is literally pocketing their wages. I don't think they knew they were signing up to be escorts. And we the taxpayers subsidize this? Unbelievable.
3
More creepiness for the No Fun League. I don't patronize the NFL anymore. It's part of the Trumpian cultural cohort.
1
It’s unfortunate but when the reality is that the NFL could pay these women minimum wage or nothing at all and still have a line out the door for volunteers these programs won’t be going anywhere. And after all the scandals with the NFL it’s clear, the fans aren’t going anywere either.
1
I'm not a football fan and never will be. I have better use for time, than watch these millionaires make more millions. But, I am questioning this constant picture of "victimization" of the women that sign up for "ambassadors" or cheerleaders. Did they not know that they would be the "eye candy" for the fans? Why complain now. And could they not quit, as soon as they realized what their real job was? I'm sure that they had an ulterior motive in mind, when they signed up for the job. Could they have hoped that they would meet someone wealthy? Or sign up a new contract for modeling? Otherwise, why work for minimum wage? There's plenty of jobs out there for women that don't want to use their looks to make money.. No, they are not victims and I have no sympathy for them
4
I would never be interested in a job like this, but I'm surprised and even dismayed that these women a) took the job they apparently don't like and b) signed an agreement as part of employment and then broke that agreement. Yes, men like to see pretty women. And yes, many pretty women like to be seen. If they don't, why take the job? There are many jobs and we all have choices. A ridiculous article in search for the next metoo movement entry?
4
If they hated the job, why did'nt they quit and find another one for which they were qualified?
4
Cheerleaders cheer. What’s the point of this article? To try to get a movement to do away with the sexualization of cheerleading? Then just come out and say it.
NY Giants! We don’t want ‘em. Don’t need ‘em. Play football.
2
I used to love watching NFL games but I increasingly see the league as hopelessly unenlightened. I’ll be tuning out for the foreseeable future.
5
The best cheerleader I ever saw for a professional sports team was Wild Bill Hagy for the Baltimore Orioles in the 1980s. From a central point in the stands, Wild Bill led the fans in spelling out O-r-I-o-l-e-s, using his body to shape each letter. He was not employed by the team but did it because he loved the Orioles. Fans embraced him as an important part of the Orioles experience. Nobody would have traded him for a bunch of women in scanty outfits dancing around on the field.
5
Strip clubs often don't pay their dancers at all, yet i am given to understand that they do quite well in most instances, at least financially. I don't know what the arrangement is in NFL luxury suites. But still, if they just kept the game clock running, so the game was played in 2 rather than 4 hours, they would probably not even need a floor show.
2
But then they wouldn't get all that ad revenue! The players and owners make lots of money. The women, not so much.
I am a feminist and naturally suspicious of football culture (the latter more due to the concussion issue than feminism) yet I find these cheerleading articles puzzling. If you sign up to be a cheerleader and you thought it was about dancing I am not sure anyone can help. It's like a blue collar person voting for Trump and then being surprised that he gifted a huge tax decrease to the super rich.
There are lots of jobs in the world. No one forces anyone to be a cheerleader. I wonder why anyone would want that job. Of course this doesn't mean that their employer should be allowed to break the law or treat them poorly. However, they are hired to wear skimpy clothes and show off their physical assets. That is the job description.
67
"To gift" is a silly, unnecessary coinage. "To give" works well.
1
There are basic job protections which are legally required in any workplace, and which you seem okay with ignoring in this instance. I suggest you rethink your "I'm a feminist" because your bias against this profession has colored the rights you think should be afforded these women.
1
Ines -
...Yea, just like no one forces anyone to be a farm laborer, a maid, or a nanny - all of which also pay substandard wages. To follow your logic - why would anyone want those jobs? Perhaps because they need the work and it is the best situation they can do given their circumstances.
I sincerely doubt that the job description for "alternative cheerleaders" reads: encourage men to paw at you, be glad you're getting paid anything, and we'll show our thanks for helping us make millions by giving you a bogus Starbucks gift card!
Your lack of compassion is notable.
3
Men are attracted to beautiful women?
Who knew.
22
And other men pay the beautiful women minimum wage while pocketing thousands of dollars per woman, per appearance -- who knew?
2
That's all you took away from this? And, from the many other recent article about NFL cheerleaders?
You're ignoring:
the exploitation of the women,
pandering to male infantilism,
trafficking in objectification,
condoning groping,
pimping out cheerleaders for events and games,
dismissing sexual harassment and assault, etc.
Given the NFL's
blatant commercialization of patriotism,
its acceptance of millions from the military for flyovers, soldiers, and half-time shows,
its plantation approach to sports (white spectators watching black athletes who are discarded after a few years),
its caving to Trump and its new policy muzzling free speech,
its blacklisting of protesting players,
and its dependence upon violence, concussions, and lifelong injuries to players,
it's time to stop supporting the NFL!
Anyone who continues to follow it, going to games, watching it on TV, buying merchandise, etc. is supporting all those of vicious, malevolent, racist, sexist, and un-democratic practices!
2
The concept of the hostess is all over the business world. Just look at any trade show anywhere in the world. That's cool, I have no problem with that. Juat pay people well when you do it and treat them with respect.
25
I'd agree except it assumes that all the business people are men and the only hosts can be female, so structurally a bit of a problem.
4
That doesn't make it right, good, or humanizing.
Okay, I'll go along with your point: read the article. The women *aren't* paid well.
2
I think cheerleading should be just that - cheerleading on the sidelines for those women who want to use it as part of their dancing careers. Also, if they are down on the sidelines, they won't have to deal with the crowd. I know many see cheerleading as sexist and outdated, and at times it may be, but it is a subset of a dancing career for those women part of an actual cheerleading squad. Women should be free to pursue that career without feminist backlash.
However, the idea of having "noncheerleading cheerleaders" is not only a contradiction in terms, it opens these women up to having to endure harassment and groping from fans who have no business touching them. They are being exploited not because they don't have talents, but because their talents are considered secondary to their sex appeal to strangers who are probably drunk. It's a recipe for disaster even without the alcohol thrown into the mix, and it should be ended immediately with some kind of back pay deal for the women.
8
This idea of the oppressive reach of "feminist backlash". OMG. As if there is some list in which women get voted off the island because they do a job feminists have critiqued. Please.
Feminists have critiqued the presence of cheerleaders not because we object to women having dancing careers but because their presence was always about what they were doing here.
In fact the dancing and gymnastics came after our critiques as a way to make it respectable.
While it most certainly is on the high school level and can be considered its own sport there, the NFL sticks to its original idea no matter how hard actual NFL cheerleaders work. There is no logical reasons why dancers should mix with customers except the obvious this is about selling sex and bodies not their athleticism.
1
It seems like the NFL is trying to be less creepy.
It's not working.
12
This is just another reason why Baseball is the best (men's) professional sport... No cheerleaders!
9
Well, the good news is that in this country we apparently have run out of actual problems to deal with.
26
You don't consider physical assault of women an actual problem? Why, because they were "asking for it" by dressing provocatively?
3
This is about people who have money and people who don’t.
No one would take this job if they didn’t have to.
As it happens this - like so many other phenomena - displays how many ways we can ignore the real inequalities- (as many commenters display) reconciling it to be about other matters - like women “wanting”(?!) to be objectified.... wow. Also mistreated-underpaid- and probably more...
16
I'm not so sure that women wouldn't take the job if they didn't have to. Lots of women are socialized to view their own value in their attractiveness to men. Having this role, as a cheerleader, would add to their value in their very own eyes. Let's at least be honest about that.
1
We, the taxpaying public, need to stop subsidizing this violent, patriarchal, sexist game. It's time for it to be removed it from our schools, and let the NFL develop its own farm system.
58
They filed complaints stating they were used as sex symbols for male fans? What exactly did they think they were being hired for as, “non cheering cheerleaders?”
If you submitted your measurements and bust size as part of the job application, you knew exactly what you were signing up to be. A sex symbol for male fans.
56
I think maybe one point of this is that women are raised in the same sexist society as men and so they buy into it, too. None of us can really escape it, but we can try to be aware and change things when they become untenable. When these young women experience what this program can mean for them personally, they wake up as it were... not a fun way to get their consciousness raised, to be sure. But maybe not such a bad thing for them to speak out. I for one did not know about it, and to me it's just another example of the age old assumptions that are made about women being around simply for men's pleasure (not all men are like this, of course, but the NFL is clearly banking on this assumption -- too bad. Not all football fans are men!).
2
They didn’t sign up to be groped, prodded and completely devoid of any bargaining power.
3
One more Theses to nail to the stadium door!
Brain Death For Billionaires is a reprehensible organization from Roger Goodell to the $40 'parking lot' that was constructed with public funds for 'needed infrastructure'.
Along with the recent clarification as to proper behavior before the opening kickoff, this is another “Disputation on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences" i.e. monies paid to said Billionaires.
Enough....
9
Cheerleaders, as contestants for beauty pageant, may be abused for their looks and curves, a form of exploitation that, in the not too distant future, may be viewed as sexist or worse. Especially if they are invited to special events thereafter, to entertain their rich donors. Hypocrisy seems alive and well. And money speaks, as usual.
3
I love beautiful women; smart ones, too, and I prefer a combination of both. But didn't these women understand that time-worn but true cliche, "sex sells"? The low pay is awful, especially when bruisers on the field are making something like $1000 a second - but these "women-as-accessories" certainly had to have at least some inkling of what they were getting into and that they "were getting paid in 'prestige,'" not dollars. It's certainly not right, but it's real. And it's also thoroughly unenlightened - but so, I would contend, is the NFL. (I'm not a fan and proud of it.)
33
Yeah, this being paid in prestige is BS. It's a solid job not an internship. And I'm not sure what's so prestigious about wearing a costume with your butt cheeks open and being mauled by drunken entitled men.
The NFL pretends cheerleaders lead a glamorous life with a lot of opportunities when in fact it was anything but as a bait and switch. It relied on silence and non-disclosure agreements.
Now women are speaking out so that others will be more aware. Until the woman speak out, how were they to know?
2
"...I'm not a fan and proud of it." I join you CP as a non-fan. The League's decision to limit the player response to societal racism is the last straw for me. Add in the permanent physical damage to players and my leaving the NFL dog-fight-drama is a "no-brainer". (No pun, etc). Caveat: Former Packer fan of 50 plus years.
1
They are aiming for cheerleader next season. If they can get a way in through hostessing, which is the way it is sold to them, they'll do it. Unfortunately, they are not treated with respect and they are horribly underpaid. I would say that this reflects the owners' and managers' overall respect for women, i.e., they have none. "Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for Me." The least of those on their payroll were these women, and the men in control of their financial lives didn't think of them as human.
1
of the four major sports in America, the NFL has
always been the most sexualized, going back to
the Edie Adams cigar commercials in the 1960s.
sex and football have drawn men,especially young men,for decades.I love my N.Y. Giants
and am proud of them for not having cheerleaders. they are as anachronistic as the
Miss America pageants.
27
They didn’t sign up to be groped, prodded and completely devoid of any bargaining power.
It seems unreal, yet it is. Absolutely shameful of the N.F.L. This too I hope will end. The N.F.L.’s position on the kneeling was not what it should have been, but at least they aren’t forcing players on to the field... they may at least choose to be absent. Progress sometimes comes slowly and this reporting serves the cause of progress and may yield some change; I hope it does.
6
Pro football is a sickness.
One third of players develop severe brain disease.
The owners just want to make as much money as possible.
Both the male players as well as the female cheerleaders or ambassadors are simply to be exploited so owners can increase their revenue.
Pro football is similar to the lions and gladiators in the old Roman Empire.
We ban rooster fighting and dog fighting yet tolerate pro football.
31
These young women deserve to be treated as fairly as any laborer - which the highlighted NFL teams are not doing. Clearly the game itself doesn't sell, but - players get millions - and these girls get 7 bucks and a quarter an hour.
8
Not surprised that the NFL is doing this or by the list of teams involved. Just another reason not to watch.
19
Precisely what motivates these women from accepting these jobs whose purpose is transparent to everyone, including them? The cheerleaders themselves should answer this question since, surely, they had a goal in taking the job. What is/was that goal?
23
"Precisely what motivates these women from accepting these jobs whose purpose is transparent to everyone, including them?" That's a loaded question based on an unsubstantiated premise. Unsubstantiated, that is, unless a thing is so simply because YOU think "how could it be otherwise?"
2
They do this because they want to. Not every reader of the NYT has to get it, but these women enjoy the feeling of power that comes, via their attractiveness, with gaining men’s interest. That is why they are willing to do it for little pay; the job has other elements that attract them. The NFL cheerleaders are but one example of this ubiquitous phenomenon. And that is certainly their prerogative. That is women making their own decision, and not having to ask the NYT readers for permission. That is actual women’s lib: freedom to choose to do what they want. All you who judge them, under the guise of liberalism, are hypocrites, still wanting to control women.
(As an irrelevant aside: if it were up to me, I’d cancel the whole cheerleader thing. But I don’t get to decide for them. That’s the point.)
68
After reading this and other articles, I feel most do this because they were lied to about the actual duties. They continue because they signed a contract and the contract holders would say leave in the middle and we will destroy your career, just like the abusive guys in Hollywood do. The girls until now have kept the abuse secret due to confidentiality agreements. There is nothing empowering about being felt up for $7.50 an hour!
7
I would suggest that being “felt up” is hardly commonplace. That would be illegal and should be dealt with appropriately provided it is reported. People need to stop assuming the worst is what always happens. Presumably, they know the pay when they sign up.
3
I got news for you. They may want to do it, but they don't want to be groped and harassed. They may want to do it based on what they were told, but I can guarantee you they were not told about the abuse of their bosses or the abuse of the money grubbers in the suites. You wouldn't want to be groped either, would you?
4
The NY Giants have the best cheerleaders.
Important to note that they have no cheerleaders. Zero. The best.
47
Let’s inquire about the six (?) teams WITHOUT squads: Buffalo, Cleveland, Green Bay, Chicago, Pittsburgh, NYG. Why? The “Honey Bears” were disbanded over 30 years ago. Counterpoint story, please!
5
I agree about the request for a counterpoint story about the teams not using these types of cheerleaders. I commend the NYT for this reporting, and I think that highlighting some of the teams listed above would show successful alternatives and acknowledge the teams bucking this trend. As a feminist and Packer fan, I am so happy to see the college cheerleaders at their games, actually cheering, showing their athleticism, and dressing sensibly for the (usually v cold) weather in wind pants and jackets.
A sport that encourages at best sexism or at worst is some kind of sex madam-ism, where players suffer life-modifying concussions and where a basic right to protest has been curtailed. US 2017? Rome 100?
21
Why 2017? Do you consider life-modifying concussions in 2012 were OK because players allegedly would have been allowed to protest?
We'll never know for sure. For some reason back to 2012 there was nothing to protest against, there was no police brutality before 11/8/2016.
This is also a real slap in the face to the women who are cheerleaders and incredible athletes. They practice and work as hard as the players in many sports but we have distorted our view of their athleticism. I don’t have any answers but I hope they are eventually seen as athletes not sex symbols.
8
Also, there is real physical danger involved
1
These are not college cheerleaders who ARE actually athletes and quite strong ones. These NFL girls, from cheerleader to "ambassador" ,
get paid to shake pompoms and do a high kick every once in a while. They are not doing back flips and other quite incredible aerial stunts. You are confused.
If people in cheerleading want to be taken seriously as atheletes, they should perhaps dress like atheletes and not sex symbols?
1
The Texans "ambassadors " need to reach out to J.J. Watts. He seems like a really good citizen, and someone who could sway Texans management.
2
“He would look each of us up and down and say, I want that one and that one, and everyone hated when you got selected for that,” a former ambassador said of the lineups that occurred just a few years ago. “It was humiliating, like we were cattle.”
Humiliating someone is unacceptable no matter the situation. I think it’s pretty clear you’re not there for thoughtful conversation.
So, don’t do it.
8
Bust size on an application... Fathers need to do better raising their sons & IMO it all starts there.
6
It should start with those billionaire male team owners and the senior management of the team organization. They're the reason that the abuse is ignored. They probably would never have their daughters or grand-daughters ever be a sports team cheerleader because they know how humiliating it would be for them.
1
Bust size is not a descriptive attribute necessary for any legitimate dancing job unless the primary purpose is to waggle them and tittilate men. This is purely objectivication and degradation of the female body and spirit. Why subject women to this? So the sales reps make big commissions at their expense. Sex sells.
Why doesn't the NFL just hire hookers and exotic dancers to prance around in g-strings and pasties? One way to get the well-heeled execs into the luxury boxes. They can invite Mario Batali along for the fun. Or, perhaps, they could install stripper poles on the sidelines. Yay team. They wouldn't have to worry about empty seats at Levi Stadium. And it would take fans' minds off the fact that the players are destroying their brains for our amusement.
105
This is a terrific idea. At least then it would be worth the price of the ticket.
20
Yea, and if this is what it takes to sell luxury suites then the teams' business plans are pretty whacked. Why are cities spending precious infrastructure dollars to build new stadiums for millionaires to support this boondoggle?
1
And somebody in DC would be too busy calling team owners for the ladies' names and phone numbers to notice any kneeling players!
3
"As a voice-over in the [Redskins] video says, 'membership has its privileges,' the video pans over a photo of a woman in a bikini…. Bruce Allen, the Redskins’ president, said...'We are committed to ensuring that all Redskins employees, including our cheerleaders and ambassadors, are treated with the upmost respect.'" Sometimes the pablum cooked up by PR hacks can induce vomiting.
19
I have news for you.
Every FBS college football team has almost the same thing.
They have cheerleaders, and then they have dancers, which are supposed to act like cheerleaders, but who (choose to) wear provacative clothing. The universities aren't forcing the dancers to dress like this. In fact, some universities censor the dancers' costumes, and force them to cover up more of their skin.
The cheerleaders and dancers don't entertain recruits, but they are what they are: the cheerleaders are women and men, and the dancers are ALWAYS women. Yes, the dancers are eye candy, because I've noticed that the female cheerleaders are chosen not according to their looks, but according to how little they weigh (because they're thrown up in to the air and caught by the other cheerleaders).
And none of these cheerleaders or dancers are on any type of scholarships.
10
We have both cheerleaders and what you call “eyecandy” dancers at my daughters’ high school. Ditto for college. They are called “pommers” at there. They work very hard on their dance routines and are talented and respected. They perform at half time and have a different role than cheering. My daughters are both cheerleaders, but their mom was a pommer. I assume you don’t understand that group choreographed dancing takes a lotta skill and talent, and to do so in front of a big football crowd, some real courage too. To say these talented young girls are mere “eye candy” is just dead wrong, and frankly pretty disgusting.
If you attended one of our football games, my wife would let you know it a lot more strongly this
4
It’s hard to believe your argument about “eye candy” when the girls must wear short skirts and the boys wear long pants. I’ve also yet to see a female cheerleader not wear full make up and have hair done up, but sure, let’s market it as skill and talent.
Having your daughter practice for hours on end is admirable to cheer the boys on, I guess, but you know very well they are viewed as eye candy. That you overlook this is frankly disgusting.
Cheerleading is completely unnecessary and needs to die.
This article is about women who are hired solely on the basis of their looks, and whose only job is to mingle with fans. No one is insulting your daughters (or the women who took these jobs): the ire is directed at the team owners who have no problem exploiting women (and men) in order to line their own pockets.
2
Pandering to pervy rich men, not exactly a new concept. The NFL has show itself to be the distillation of all the distortions capitalism is capable of: a strangle-hold on its employees, disregard for the health of its employees, toadying to the powers that be (Trump), exploitation of the vulnerable and ignorant. Where is our Edward Gibbon?
34
Maybe being an NFL owner would be a good idea to lure Emperor Trump out of that annoying Oval Office job.
2
He tried that, when he couldn't get a team he tried to set up a rival league. Like many of his other ventures, it too bombed, probably sticking other "investors" for the majority of the losses.
7
Chalk up the "noncheering cheerleaders" right next to "driverless deliveries" and "robot journalists" as the next really dumb idea to be tried and go wrong.
2
Why, why, why do women subject themselves to this type of degradation? For what? It's not money. It's not dancing. So what is it? Seems like there is some perverse need for male approval. It's 2018. If only young, attractive women would stop placing all of their self worth in their looks, these idiotic, sexist programs would dry up immediately.
45
The birds in my yard all sing and preen in their finest spring plumage in order to attract the most desirable mate.
Despite all of our modernity and rational intelligence it appears that we are still animals seeking a perfect mate.
For birds it seems that males must sing and preen to attract the best mate. For humans it seems that females typically do the dancing.
It's really just human nature but it seems gross when journalists need a story in the me2 era.
Don't like being exploited for your beauty? Work at the grocery store or Starbucks for the same or better pay.
7
"Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose."
-- J.A. Karr
8
So they hired some women to strut around and entice men. Sure I get it. It's football. God, flag, and misogyny all come together in a celebration of head banging stupidity.
46
Why do they continue? I'd guess because it's generally been seen to be a respectable job... one that provides a certain status and possibly provides a low-cost opportunity to meet some interesting people without submitting to the high cost and inherent danger of frequenting bars and nightclubs. I would bet a number of these women do not even use alcohol.
3
Cause folks need jobs, Andy. What you are missing is that no one needs harrassment of any sort at work. And the abusive conditions decribed at this place of work are completely unacceptable. Furthermore... what do you mean about “inherent danger” for women frequenting nightclubs? Is that because we all expect men to be violent and women to be the object of violence? Why isn’t it as safe for women to go to a nightclub as it is (as I would assume you’d say) for men? I’d like to ask you that.
7
Low cost opportunity? How can they pay rent on $7.50 an hour? They would have had to save up a lot of money to subsidize this abusive job. Unless they find a sugar daddy to cover living costs, they lose a lot taking this job.
1
Elizabeth - As opposed to paying a $20 cover charge or buying a membership, not to mention the cost of concert tickets. These are part-time jobs and are filled by those who get satisfaction from what they're doing... not unlike a fisherman or hunter spending hours waiting for that certain moment. In other words, no one, but no one, takes such a job for financial reasons, other than the opportunity to meet someone much better off. Maybe you live on a street where billionaires live in every other home?
I sympathize with the cheerleaders who dance. They are performers.
But what do these women think they are being hired to do?
14
That's not dance. That is desperation for male approval. What dancer would agree to be treated this way?
1
Have you ever heard of strippers?
Just another example of extremely profitable organisations showing just how selfish and opportunistic they can be to Employees, showing no regard or conscience as they exploit them to any and all extents that they possibly can, stopped from giving less and doing anything more than legally mandated and regulated.
These are not struggling businesses but are in fact some of the most profitable and richest entities that year after year are veritable money making machines for their owners , but so often (as seen here) will do the least possible to share any of their success with those that help make it possible.
This is the face of unfettered American Capitalism , where employees are exploited, abused and seen as an opportunistic resource that they can control and which has no power or recourse to get more or live a little better and thus are treated as badly as when it is revealed, despite all attempts to ensure it isn't. So these acts and treatment only grows and will continue to do so , regardless of increasing profits, success and growth, but made worse as Business removes more Government checks and regulations and gets more power and control to treat its workers worse and by which they operate by for ultimate advantage and gain at everybody else's expense.
15
They are not employees. Many cheerleaders are sub-contractors ie 'models who serve' just like in Vegas. They can be fired for gaining weight.
2
Employees or not...they are Exploited people and that should not be permitted to happen or occur.
The part of the article that jumped out at me was that the ambassadors are encouraged to buy salon services at facilities owned by the cheerleading manager. To see how wrong this sounds, Imagine that you work in an office and would like a promotion. your boss lets you know that you might get promoted faster (or at all) if you regularly frequent a full service salon/spa owned by her family. Sounds terrible, doesn’t it?
35
No, they were "encouraged" to frequent the same salons as the regular cheerleaders. The coach owned a non-profit dance studio/group which they were pressured to donate to.
2
American Capitalist Exploitation 101. Get and do whatever you can get away with and ensure you can't be stopped by anyone.
6
It's not really how they make living. For $7 a game, they have to know what they are in for. Why agree to it??
4
The time has come to ban cheerleading. And beauty pageants. And fashion models. And actresses. Basically, any job requiring physical beauty should be banned.
14
What a crass opinion.
Some women, and I'm guessing more than a few, may actually be enjoying themselves as cheerleaders.
Have you seen cage fighting? Talk about abuse for the benefit of stupid men. And there are real consiquences in MMA: Concussion, cauliflower ear, broken bones, even death.
You know what I'd like to ban? ...Contra dancing and white people with dreadlocks.
How about we gripe about a real issue, like our compulsively lying President and his Russia loving family and associates.
1
The owners, Donald Trump, bludgeoning patriotism, and pandering to creepy rich men; nothing like the NFL to promote wholesome family values!
38
Boycott NFL
29
Sounds like the NFL was designed by Hugh Hefner. I guess it's popular with the Trump base and other assorted right wing types who like their women to be in a subservient position. And some women want to be popular, and cheering feeds their ego. They like the attention, but feel disgusted by the attire and the groping.
10
I bet Hefner and the playboy corporation paid better.
19
And some women honestly love to dance & so they grab at the chance to continue using/honing the dance and gymnastic skills they've been acquiring since pre-school.
3
Seriously. The low pay makes this creepy situation even creepier.
This quote from the article pretty much says it all:
"but you just shut up and do it because you want to be a cheerleader"
If these women are choosing to continue to work at this "job" then they are choosing to put up with shutting up and doing it. They are not victims of human trafficking. Nor are they indentured servants.
Get a job as Starbucks. Probably has better benefits, and maybe even free coffee.
74
And (at least here, 4 years ago) they start you at least a dollar above minimum wage.
5
Football is violent and results in horrible brain damage and should be illegal just for that.
But this abuse of women for the horrible male fans who get off on brain damage is beyond hideous.
Keep the protests, but stop football, now. End our gladiator society.
19
I don't think you can "stop" football. People will always play it. It could be de- or less-funded, though...
I don’t care if it’s legal or if the women know what they’re getting into — this is just gross. I’m really getting turned off the NFL. They use women badly, throw their players under the bus at the whim of the President, and suck up public money. It’s corrupt.
25
Yes because player "abuse" has only been happening since 2016. This cheerleader abuse has only been occurring since 2016? College players have been voicing their "slavery" only since 2016? Huh?
This is one reason why I remain a Steeler fan!
5
"...ostensibly work as cheerleaders but, as one former ambassador put, actually serve as “eye candy” for male fans."
Or looked at another way, cheerleaders are eye candy for male fans, who also happen to dance. Who are we kidding.. the overwhelmingly male audience for the NFL aren't admiring the cheerleader dance routines. Otherwise why the standards for beauty and body type? Where are the all-male squads and entertainers?
On the one hand I want to ask why in 2018 we have still have cheerleaders, whose basic job is for the fans to have something to oogle at in between plays. And on the other.. these women must know what they're getting into, or at the very least know *very* quickly after starting. Word gets around quick, and yet despite all that there are hundreds of women waiting for these jobs. Something's not right.
30
I think I'm missing something. Why would women WANT to sign up for a minimum wage job that involves being treated as a sex object by both their employer and the business' clients, exploits them for the huge economic reward of the team owners, and involves sexual harassment? Has patriarchal culture indoctrinated young women into thinking this is somehow glamorous? Or what? At least strippers make good money.
43
The only way it makes any sense is if they were truly starving and could not get stripper jobs/better-paying modeling jobs. That does not appear to be the case, though. At least one woman mentioned had been a model, and there is no mention of any of them having kids or medical bills or anything like that. So that kind of blows up the whole narrative of desperation some commenters are pitching here. More likely, some naively thought they'd get to be real cheerleaders one day, while others didn't mind the job so much until someone crossed The Line.
14
They are raised to serve men. Since very young age, boys try out for tackle football teams, while their sisters compete for the cheerleading squads.
8
How is being a cheerleader some condemnation of our society and making little girls serve men? HS and especially college cheerleaders are incredible athletes for the most part. These pro girls get paid to be pretty, shake a pom pom and do a leg kick every 5 minutes. Hardly athletic and mostly eye candy. Apples and oranges. It is what it is and these women know that.
Okay, obviously, no one deserves to be sexually assaulted, as the woman who had her private area touched was; but in terms of being objectified and serving as "eye candy"...What did they expect? They were told that, unlike cheerleaders- who might choose to accept objectification because they get to cheer- they would not be cheering or even dancing at all. Their job interview consisted of a bikini contest. What did they think the job would be like?
37
Maybe under the individual circumstances of these people this was an opportunity. Maybe it was the best opportunity they had. Who are you to judge?
2
Walmart, Costco, McDonalds, Taco Bell, etc all pay better without the sexualization.
At Macys, Nordstroms, Saks etc they could put their beauty into play without the sexualization and be paid better.
these jobs are out there in droves.
I have been reading this series too and no one seems to bring up the fact that college cheerleaders who work just as hard are not paid. There are usually over 100,000 Olympic Games volunteers who are not paid - including all of the talent used in opening and closing ceremonies. By comparison, NFL Cheerleaders are paid comparable to Minor League Baseball players based on compensation divided by games worked. Plus they do not get a lot of perks - free gym membership, free dance training, and free hair, makeup and nails. Yes the pay could be higher. Another perspective - at least they don't have to pay to workout and enjoy the networking and adulation. Since they are on the Field they have the same workers comp insurance cost as the players. It is a lot more expensive to NFL Clubs than it appears.
4
NCAA cheerleaders are amateur athletes, as are Olympians. NFL cheerleaders work in a highly profitable professional sport. Why shouldn't they be paid a commensurate wage for their time, efforts, and talents? Additionally, look at the rash of NFL cheerleader lawsuits. These don't paint a rosy picture filled with free perks. Mostly, they show abuse, harassment, and pay far below minimum wage.
Nearly half of all NFL fans watching at home are now female. We female fans of the sport don't necessarily object to cheerleaders per se. But we do object to the teams we love being awful employers, specifically to women.
Bottom line to the NFL: if you want top tier dancing and modeling talent, PAY FOR IT and don't allow a hostile working environment. There should be zero tolerance for groping and harassing women who are on the job. Period.
7
First of all, the NFL is antiquated and exploitative, not only of its cheerleaders but across the board towards its employees and subcontractors. I don’t care for it much as an organization and the sport itself is not appealing to me personally.
Second, however, I need to point out that these women are paid based on what the market supports. The reason they aren’t paid more is at least in part because there is a huge pool of willing participants and low demand for their skill set. That’s capitalism. Don’t get me wrong: there’s for sure some chauvinism at the root of this problem (of pay, I mean), but it is the same reason a janitor isn’t paid like an engineer.
1
Another NFL fan, unhappy about many if not most aspects. They do not respect their female fans AT ALL.
This whole concept of cheerleading, or hostessing based on looks and gender is outdated and offensive.
29
Is someone forcing women to do this?
18
to do what?
The whole NFL thing stinks to the high heavens, from having cost free farm system (aka NCAA college football) and publicly financed arenas, to paying female teasers 7 bucks an hour to allow VIP customers to act like pervs.
On the other hand, these girls know what they are getting themselves into. If they want respect stay the heck away from sleazy jobs and places where testosterone runneth over.
This is not to say that acting like a jerk is okay. It isn't. But why play in that sandbox to begin with?
15
"jobs in which harassment and groping were common"
More like the job is to be harassed by fans celebrating with drink and unknown pretty girls. There are bars that sell the same thing, "hostesses." It is a thing, with a clear job description.
6
The closest the Packers ever came to this was having a drink at Fuzzy Thurston's bar, given that Fuzzy was the cheerleading ambassador even though he never wore any skimpy clothing.
6
So many reasons to not watch NFL football. Players aren't 'allowed' to kneel in protest of poor treatment of African-Americans within US society. Men crash around and get long term brain injuries. Sometimes Super Bowl champions are referred to as 'world champions', despite the fact that no other country plays football or football of this type. And women mindbogglingly work as arm candy, cheerleaders, dancers, escorts, or models to sell the sport.
No thank you.
41
Well, this treatment of cheerleaders and pseudo-cheerleaders is what you'd expect at a sport where men knowingly get brain damage in order to earn a living.
I'm not going to lay in bed at night angry over the way these women are treated. People make money off of their looks in many different ways, including in how they attract the right type of mate they're looking for.
It's appalling, but not surprising. The 'gladiator' aspect of sports, especially football, has always had sexuality as part of its allure. After all, the high school quarterback dating the prom queen is nothing new. I would daresay that getting girls is one of the main reasons that many boys play football in the first place. And most male football fans are frustrated jocks--even if you only played tag football in gym class there was that sense of being stronger, faster, cooler than those you left in your dust. So why shouldn't their testosterone levels be off the charts if those same guys now captains of industry, or well-paid professionals or tech workers, who are basically the only people who can afford to go to games anyway? And why is the league "shocked, shocked" that these women are mistreated? And why not the women themselves? The media is complicit too. Not so many years ago, one of the big stories was the Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders complaining about having to wear bicycle shorts (they already were wearing hotpants, so I admit it was hard to understand what they were complaining about.) That story made it on to the front pages of newspapers around the country, I suppose because it allowed them to put a picture of a Cowboys cheerleader on the front page above the fold.
3
These women are explicitly hired to serve as hostesses, just like at bars and clubs. Even if the job was vague when they were hired, the women must have figured it out when they were in bikinis in a room full of rich old men. If they continue working past day 1, aren’t they consenting to the conditions? Assuming women aren’t helpless children, can’t they just quit if they don’t like it?
46
I think you missed the point - that these kinds of practices are degrading, disgusting and woman hating. That you can get women to do it is hardly a vindication.
19
It's hard to keep up with the rules these days- am I allowed to be disgusted by the objectification of women AND the women who willingly sign up to be objectified? Or do I have to choose a team?
49
I'll make it easy - pick the one with the power and the money to be horrified by.
10
If NFL stadiums (and NBA or NHL arenas) did not regularly require millions of taxpayer dollars to "keep" teams in a city (market), many of the abusive policies of the NFL could just be chalked up to monopoly power run amuck with the consent of all elected officials involved, including many liberal Democrats. Unfortunately since men still dominate government, sports teams get millions in "welfare" disguised as economic investments.
It seems to me that the taxpayers are essentially the landlords of the "brothel" or whatever name one calls a money-making suite which apparently requires "ambassadors" who put up with being groped, propositioned and treated poorly as employees. Perhaps it is time for the taxpayers in certain cities to question the marketing plans of their sports teams as well as how employees even contract employees are treated
I am not sure what happens to aging cheerleaders; I hope they don't suffer the same brain damage as aging NFL, NHL, NBA, etc. players, but the possible promotion opportunities from "ambassador" seem scarce and health care doesn't seem to be a benefit for cheerleaders whether they dance or not.
The comments seem to be blaming the women who take the jobs for $7.25/hour and all of the abuse which comes along with those jobs. Remember most of the teams are Red State, recruit coaches and staff from Red State college programs and all of the owners sure seem to be Good ol' Boys at heart. Equality for women isn't a Red State value.
11
It's sort of hard to know how to feel about this...clearly, this is sexual exploitation, and the groping and sexual misconduct should not be tolerated, but if this is legal, it makes teams money, and there are women willing to do this work, it's sort of hard to fault teams for doing it. The more puzzling questions for me are why some men enjoy doing things to women that the women clearly don't like, and why men think it's fun to be with women who are only giving them attention because they are paid to do so. It may strike some that I'm just being politically correct here, but I really, truly, honestly don't understand those things at all.
21
Indeed...Who says male NFL fans LIKE this whole Cheerleader nonsense in the first place?!
It’s for the TV audience anyway...The ladies are a million miles from most fans...
There’s nothing traditional about cheerleading’s association with professional football...
But whatever you do, don't take a knee during the national anthem.
38
Mommas, don't let your girls grow up to be models or cheerleaders.
--- With a tip of my Stetson to Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings
8
When did the NFL become so awful?
6
This is why I like ice hockey. There is no place physically for cheerleaders although some teams are definitely working on it.
Like Las Vegas.
But, why don't we repeal the laws that require these women to take these demeaning jobs in the first place? Wouldn't that be the easiest thing to do?
2
Colleges have co-ed cheerleading squads. Does the NFL believe that what works for men as part of their "game day experience" wouldn't work for women?
I guess when a group of white team owners are making all of the calls, you shouldn't be surprised by sexism.
3
Stadiums where peaceful protest is quashed, traumatic brain injury is an accepted trade-off for ticket sales, and women are pimped out to wealthy men.
All paid for by the local taxpayers who can't afford one game a year out with their kids, even in the nosebleed section.
I've long believed that taxpayer-funded 'economic development' projects should be prohibited, and this is just one more reason why.
34
Cheerleaders in the major sports leagues have always been basically modest strippers. That is the job. I don't know what else the women were expecting.
10
I agree. But at least they could be paid better for it, considering the amount of money the teams make off of their presence at functions and in thee suites.
12
Exactly. What is the purpose of those skimpy outfits? Shouldn't they instead wear gym clothes for practical purposes?
2
Strip clubs have no-touch rules. These women would be treated better in a strip club than to be groped and molested, and maybe worse, in an NFL suite.
I fail to see why any of this is "news". It is certainly - and forever will be - human nature.
Men have enjoyed looking at attractive women since Adam sought to become "one flesh" with Eve.
8
This author is not complaining about being looked at. She is complaining about being treated poorly in her workplace for many other reasons.
And I am confused here. Why is human nature used an excuse for anything, at the same time Adam and Eve are credited for birthing the human race? Isn't the goal of human civilization to live better than other animals?
26
And since then, some men have learned to grow beyond their infantile fantasies.
7
Nothing in the Bible refers to Adam leering at Eve. And hopefully we have evolved in the several thousand years since the Old Testament was written. (But maybe not, since sanctioned raping and pillaging still seem to be in the Authoritarian Playbook.)
1
Sexy women using their sex appeal to meet rich and powerful men - that cannot be permitted to occur.
How dare these women chose to accept jobs with which liberals disagree.
Who do they think they are - free Americans ?
9
What, exactly, do “liberals” have to do with this story? Besides, the NFL is not the only industry that uses attractive women to sell products. Every trade show I have ever attended has attractive models in product display areas to attract male customers. I consider myself to be politically liberal, and I don’t object to NFL teams hiring models to attract wealthy customers, but the billionaire team owners should have the decency to pay them a lot more money. The greed of the ultra right-wing team owners is galling, to say the least.
5
As if I needed one more reason to dump my Redskins season tickets. Someone needs to tell Danny Snyder that a competent owner who is more concerned about developing a winning team than about lining his pocket would sell tickets far faster than adding 'ambassadors' to enchant the guys.
The legendary 80,000 waiting list for Redskin tickets has long evaporated under Snyder's ownership and, since I turned in my long-held tickets, I have been pursued in a variety of ways to take them back (reduced ticket price is not one of those ways). When tickets last year were being traded for Snickers bars, the owner should realize that silly (and sexist) marketing ploys won't work.
15
This from an organization that says they are all about American values and standing up for the national anthem. But maybe babes in scantily clad outfits are what America is all about to the NFL - and making a profit.
21
This article details repeated examples of sexual assault, sexual harassment and a hostile workplace -- all the foreseeable result of team management's calculated decision to sell suites to straight male fans in exchange for physical proximity to attractive young female bodies showing a lot of skin, at at time when the fans are likely to be drunk.
So why does the article, starting with its headline, focus on -- you guessed it, the NFL's deceptive sales practices toward the MEN?
How many months of "national reckoning" have we racked up in the #MeToo movement? How many decades has it been since the enactment of sexual harassment laws? How long ago did we all supposedly learn a lesson from the national disgrace of Congress's mistreatment of Anita Hill?
I'm skeptical of dogmatic notions like the existence of a "patriarchy," but articles like this are certainly contributing to the mounting evidence of a culture-wide and bizarrely extreme bias toward the point of view of powerful men.
5
From its core, American football is corrupt. It recruits unpaid college players who don't receive real educations. Its main attraction is its violence. Many of its players hate the country that pays them millions of dollars to play. They will probably develop dementia or some other disability after their careers are over. Cheerleaders are underpaid and often abused. Taxpayers who can't afford the high ticket prices have to subsidize the building and maintenance of stadiums. Its fans spend their weekends overeating and drinking, numbed to its violence. Just a few steps short of Rome's gladiatorial entertainment, and you don't even have to leave your home to enjoy it, thanks to HiDef TV.
23
I love football but I really am beginning to hate the NFL. Goodell; the owners greed for money; the players with protests- enough- shut it off for a few seasons- hopefully other fans will join- it’s the only way things might improve. Hit them in their wallets- that is where their ears are- how they listen.
5
I am not getting this. The job description is to be an escort for $7 an hour. If your only qualification is walking around in sexy outfits, why don't you just apply for a job as an escort and make more money in a better work environment. If you don't want to be a sex worker, find literally any other minimum wage job. Yes, these positions should not even exist, but why subject yourself to this once you realize what the job is about? Be realistic and have some self-respect.
50
As long as Homeland inSecurity(!) under President Obama(!!) would raid(!!!) sex-work websites, and as long as mis-laws like FOSTA lump sex work with human trafficking, those who would want to be sex workers in the US must settle for alternative, exploitative means like this.
Such mis-crackdowns won't stop human trafficking and general NFL tackiness, but will sure keep pimps happy.
Legalize sex work already! Then we can tell women (and men) to do that.
3
Why are do we insist on blaming people who face harassments/assaults at a legal job for taking the job in the first place? Just because a job requires good-looks in a conventional sense (cheerleaders, airline stewards, actors, waitstaff, etc.) does not mean that the person who takes that job is less of a human being/citizen and deserves fewer rights than other people in other jobs that don't require good looks (doctors, lawyers, teachers, etc.). It is a LEGAL job and should be subject to the same minimum protections and rights as other jobs in the job market. I feel it is only right to blame a person for taking the cheerleading/modeling job with NFL if the NFL team openly advertises that this job does not offer protection from sexual harassment and assault. Let's see if anyone will take that job then, and if that job would even be considered legal.
10
At least motorsports "umbrella girls" hold an umbrella. Could this be any more sexist and demeaning? Perhaps when enough of the NFL's women fans stop watching, the NFL will get the message.
1
Please don't put it on women to solve this. Men should take a stand too.
2
This article details repeated examples of sexual assault, sexual harassment and a hostile workplace -- all the foreseeable result of team management's calculated decision to sell suites to straight male fans in exchange for physical proximity to attractive young female bodies showing a lot of skin, at at time when the fans are likely to be drunk.
So why does the article, starting with its headline, focus on -- you guessed it, the NFL's deceptive sales practices toward the MEN?
How many months of "national reckoning" have we racked up in the #MeToo movement? How many decades has it been since the enactment of sexual harassment laws? How long ago did we all supposedly learn a lesson from the national disgrace of Congress's mistreatment of Anita Hill?
I'm skeptical of dogmatic notions like the existence of a "patriarchy," but articles like this are certainly contributing to the mounting evidence of a culture-wide and bizarrely extreme bias toward the point of view of powerful men.
[fixing paragraphing glitch]
1
Here are the formulas:
1. Normalization of sex violence = Big $ Profits
2. Expression of Patriotism Military Display = Normalization of sex violence.
3. Athletes refuse to participate in expression of patriotism cheerleaders highlighting their sexual objectification = Big Profit losses
4. Silencing protesting athletes cheerleaders = Return to Big Profits gains
5. Individual viewers not watching football parents not allowing their sons to play football = End of the whole charade.
9
a dying culture of female exploitation and a dying sport. can't vanish too soon.
9
Too bad Chris Farley is no longer with us to do the appropriate SNL send-up as only he could: He'd apply for the job taking the employers at their disingenuous word (that the job is about 'cheer' not sexuality), puporting to want to be a "cheer ambassador" then trying to "charm" fans the way his counterparts do. Then he'd act confused and indignant when an issue was made of his appearace. Would've been cute.
5
Off the field, so called big time sports is largely a cesspool with football leading the pack.
2
Put on some male cheerleaders mingling with the fans and that might enhance my game day experience. Just sayin.. Otherwise it's just the same old millionaires crashing in to each other with a bunch of paid dancers jumping and jiggling on the sidelines.
Come on! You are obviously struggling with the terms "marketers", "non-cheering cheerleaders", "models", "ambassadors", and "saleswomen". I think you might get closer to the truth if you were to use the term "pimp" for those who employ and exploit these women.
10
Sex sells! Duh!
We have similar promotional models in some gay bars pushing their brand of liquor here in San Francisco. They flirt and chat you up and make a sells pitch before sending you off to the bar to buy their discounted cocktails. You hope the go-go dancer doesn’t knock over your new drink while you are digging down into your pocket.
And you thought Stormy was the only money-hungry porn stripper on the make? Think again!
6
Vulgarity, soft-core porn and concussion-inducing-violence = the reason why Americans love their version of football.
Need anyone be concerned?
Nah... why else will it be called ‘land of the free and the home of the brave’ ?
1
All jobs at the lower rungs have plenty of "I wish I was dead" moments. The ones described in this article are particularly heart-wrenching, but not particularly surprising. I haven't cared about pro (or college) football since I was a pre-teen, but I do tune in to the local franchise most Sundays. I feel a bit more guilty about that after reading this article, but the world is a brutal place. Some of us have this ugly truth hidden from us for years, by caring, well-meaning parents. Others see the reality before childhood ends. Either way, once you know that the world is a skeevy place and that lots of folks are scumbags, the question is, what do you do? It's human to hope that a bad situation will turn into a good one, but in my experience, it often just gets worse. I empathize with these women. I probably won't stop looking in on the Titans on Sundays, without caring too much about whether they win or lose.
3
I’m beginning to feel that professional cheerleaders and incel men are different sides of the same coin. Both are obsessed with sexuality and want attention related to their physicality (but only on their terms). As a feminist, I struggle with professional cheerleaders. I want to be inclusive and I don’t want any group of women to be abused further, but I’ve known a couple NFL and NBA cheerleaders and I’m not entirely comfortable with the ways they engage men and culture. This is especially true in the age of social media. It occurs to me that incel men and adult cheerleaders are seeking something similar (credit for or engagement with their bodies), but would never interact for appearances sake. Oddly, these groups might sustain (and frustrate) one another without ever engaging.
11
@Kathryn. What an odd, indeed weird, comparison: sociopathic angry young man with young women who simply want to earn a living. If dressing up in tight outfits is the best they can get at 7.50 hour, and if it’s a path to dubious self-esteem, let’s understand that some of those young women don’t have a lot of other opportunities, and let’s not compare them to sociopaths.
2
As a woman I think about the tug of war between ideal and real.
In an ideal world, attractive looks (youthful, thin), for example, wouldn't matter.
In the real world, they do, and they affect career opportunities, pay, and other benefits.
In my choices I often respond to real world contingencies, monitoring my weight, spending money on beauty treatments- but I am aware of the hypocrisy in hoping to see society change while conforming to traditional societal standards to get the benefits for myself.
I think what you are describing is internalized misogyny, when women adopt the values of patriarchal society as their own values. I'm glad NFL cheerleaders are speaking out against behavior that is clearly discriminatory. I doubt we would have recognized it as such 10 years ago. It feels like progress.
5
It’s not difficult to sympathize with the women who’ve been exploited by NFL teams as “non-cheerleaders” but it’s equally difficult to understand what they thought would happen when, dressed in sexually suggestive outfits, they catered to intoxicated football fans. And then, as I understand the article, returned season after season for minimum wage?
Don’t these women bear some responsibility for their own exploitation?
69
Yeah, like it's their fault the world is rigged the way it is... Talk about blaming the victims... So, what other career path do you suggest, wrestling tigers while covered in chicken blood? Even then, "they" would pay more see the "girls" naked - even when being eaten. Get a clue what the issue here is... Women being used for cheap thrills - and blocked from other paths in various ways... Oh, wait... Is that you Harvey...?
3
Not everyone is equally intelligent or educated. Some people have low IQ but are very good looking; others with under-average IQ or educational attainment may have a special artistic or athletic talent - like many of the football players themselves. So when we ask, "Why would anyone want to do this work?" Well, some people dig ditches and clean toilets, too. So maybe the answer simply is, because that's what they CAN do.
25
Based on aem's logic, above-average IQ women would never stoop to become cheerleaders, and the current women who are cheerleaders would not be able to rise higher than laborers or housekeepers except for their looks. So we should look upon cheerleaders as losers, then? Sad.
Digging ditches -- cleaning toilets -- flipping burgers -- even babysitting -- all pay $10 an hour or more. So why do beautiful young women accept $7.25 an hour -- to be groped and abused?
1
If you are appalled by this, your only effective weapon is to boycott the NFL.
14
The N.F.L should just get rid of the cheerleaders. There is no one I know who watches football who talks about the cheerleaders. If the television cameras did not focus their lens on the cleavage of the cheerleaders before commercial breaks, no one would know they were there.
Cheerleaders at professional sporting events, that includes the NBA, are a sexist anachronism of a past time. The teams should do the right thing and give these ladies a generous severance package and then disband them.
29
The NFL fought the science of what is happening to the brains of the players who die from the damage of this brutal activity so it is not surprising that recognizing pimping by the NFL is different.
Player`s brains being destroyed & selling sex is a money maker for the NFL. Roger Goodell, (NFL Commiss.) was paid $31.7 million in 2015, the last year for which his salary was reported.
Cheerleading is a high school course instead of a STEM course. No wonder Trump got 60 million votes.
12
Did these women not understand what they signed up for? I’m confused.
Is the outrage that these positions exist? That seems more plausible.
Sympathy for women who signed a contract knowing it was solely based on their physical appearance and then being upset their job is based on their physical appearance...hmmm.
Maybe take a few more business classes.
43
Maybe you need a business class. Or just an HR class. When hired for your looks that does not include allowing yourself to be groped and assaulted.
9
Women are clearly smarter than men. They go to college in greater numbers and law school in greater numbers. We put our children in their trust in elementary school. Why does the Times think they need protection from their own choices? I’m way more concerned about college women getting drunk and hooking up with someone they just met that night.
5
Seems to me that Stormy knew exactly what she was signing when she deposited that check.
3
Welcome to the "Modern" NFL, that is trying to give this image of a sports league that represents America, that understands issues of domestic violence and discrimination, but meanwhile is the same old same old league, dragged down by owners living in the good old days of "boys will be boys" and the like, and the fact that they are using women like this is proof positive. Then again, why should we be surprised at the hypocrisy? The NFL has been paranoid about sports betting, they proclaim it a threat to the game, yet they are a big booster of fantasy football, which brings a lot more attention to the NFL and revenue through advertising, a lot of which is about gambling.
I don't hate cheerleading, I love the NJ Jets flight crew when I go to the games (they are a lot more class than the product put on the field a lot of the time), but I am saddened that this kind of thing is going on. Then again,the same fans the NFL caved to with the anthem protests probably are wondering what the problem is, that the women signed contracts and what is wrong with a bit of clean (dirty) fun?
10
Another news story on the perils of being a professional cheerleader?
Maybe modeling divorced from actually cheering is a silly job, but what is a model if not someone's idea of an aesthetically appealing person used to sell something?
I don't know if you noticed, but restaurants and bars hire attractive people in the front of the house too. Same with retailers, gyms, airlines (more so the foreign operators) and of course actors and "real" models. Jobs where aesthetics might not fundamentally be a component of performance or competence, but nevertheless is considered useful in making the brand/product/service seem appealing, glamorous or exclusive.
Are you saying that NFL games are akin to college frat parties where otherwise functional adults can't help themselves but to sexually abuse these women? And so all interaction between fans and cheerleaders should be regulated? How about instead we focus on the small minority of fans that would actually assault another person because they are wearing a cheerleading uniform.
11
Seriously? Fans drink. Then, they get verbally and possibly physically abusive. Sometimes, even without the drinking. Have you been reading any of these articles?
Yes, the NFL is one big frat party. The rich drunks get a cheerleader, fake or not, to 'enrich' the experience. The poor fans just get drunk.
You know, at least Hef never allowed the patrons at his Playboy Clubs to grope the bunnies. Look, but never touch. I never thought I'd see the day when Hefner looked like a classy guy.
5
Dear Juliet, I haven't gone to a professional sporting event in years. When I was younger, I attended games when I lived near or in cities. I spent nearly all my time in the bleachers, the cheap seats or with the nose bleed crowd. The only scantily clad people I saw were shedding clothing because it was really hot out or they were overly enthusiastic. The primary reason for going to the game was to watch the game not ogle underpaid workers. Things change over time. I guess the new norm is to do whatever it takes to get those high priced tickets sold and keep the money rolling in. If you want to feel connected to the game, Juliet, I recommend single A. The hot dogs have been cooking for two months and the seats are cheap. RAW
7
I wish we would move past the need for sexy women as a draw for sporting events, but I defend these women's right to take the job. But it can't be part of the job to be sexually harassed, even if a fundamental requirement of the job is sexiness. Cheerleaders/ambassadors are not "asking for it" by taking the job. If the women are expected to allow groping, teams should write it into the job description, and make it obvious they want to hire sex workers.
20
By all means, lets keep focusing on the flag/kneeling distraction so that we don't have to think about CTE or sexual harassment (or, at a minimum, women being used for their bodies to earn money for the owners) in the NFL.
7
Just one of many reasons to stop watching and supporting the NFL...
29
So the attacks on cheerleaders continues, and to what purpose? So women who now freely choose to do this won't do it any more? So that businesses catering to male clientele will not use female youth, sexuality or charm to sell goods? OK. So where are waitresses, hostesses, receptionists, fashion models, and entertainers in this diatribe? Where are car, beer, outdoor sports, lodging, travel, fashion and luxury goods advertising in the hit list? I am sorry, I don't get the harm or the issue.
5
Cheerleaders get pimped out. For $7.50 an hour. They get unwanted touching and groping. I suppose it's possible that waitresses at restaurants I frequent or stewardesses on flights I take are getting mauled by customers all day long, but it seems highly doubtful.
I have no problem with cheerleaders on the field in their cute little outfits. It's a performance. It's the up close and a little too personal abuse that's disgusting.
4
You don't get it that these women are being groped and molested in the course of their work? We're disgusted when we hear that Harvey Weinstein, Mario Batali and Matt Lauer behaved as sexual predators to colleagues, co-workers and staff. Should those waitresses, actresses and support staff just think that molestation and drunken catcalls and other abuse is just part of the job description?
An obviously sexist and abusive scheme. Lump this in with other well known issues with professional sports.
It begs the question of why are billions in taxpayer funds flowing into stadiums and arenas to the direct benefit of uber wealthy owners who are behind the disturbing things described in this article. In at least some cases, there are tax breaks on top of that. Meanwhile, our infrastructure continues to deteriorate.
6
Here's an idea: aspire to something beyond being a cheerleader. You are smart, beautiful women. Cheerleading may be fun in high school, but you are adults. And even in high school it is objectifying--objectification is its nature and raison d'etre! It is not a good career choice, and as this article points out, it is also not well-paying, is humiliating and demeaning, and needs to be rejected by women.
16
Don’t like this? Stop watching the NFL. Feel free to send them a letter of complaint about this practice if you are so inclined. But, if this offends you, take a real stand and turn it off. Anything less is empty virtue signaling.
5
Watching football is now a right wing political choice . This is just another aspect of a "sport" that has aligned itself with the military, continues to treat women badly , and kisses Trumps behind instead of supporting its players rights to express legitimate grievances. The NFL would do well to remember that football fans come in many forms-----but they won't because the rich owners do not.....they are all the same: rich cowards.
18
There's not a lot of "there" there with this story (pun about clothing totally intended). Two things that stand out: 1) The NFL is an old-boy, sexist, stuck-in-time organization (you're shocked!) because otherwise, they'd hire some scantily clad men to entice all the women who bought tickets to see "Magic Mike" (didn't those "Magic Mike" movies make millions!?); 2) What are the women who are indignant about the Trump presidency, Harvey Weinstein, etc., doing buying NFL merchandise and expensive game tickets? (And yes, there are TONS of these 'liberal' women who suspend their self-righteous values on Sundays in my life.) If they withdrew their financial support, the NFL might care.
3
I took a knee.
No attending or watching NFL games.
4
Will the day ever come when women are not seen and treated like second-class citizens, pieces of meat, manipulated and exploited by men?
2
The same day that they stop printing Fifty Shades of Grey and ban the movies based upon the book series.
2
$7.25 an hour. Made to feel like "cattle" and "puppets". Physically harassed and demeaned. In any other work environment, this is known to be illegal and something would be done about it. Why is the NFL allowed to get away with this abhorrent treatment of their employees??
15
It is not illegal to pay the minimum wage.
1
Unskilled attractive women apply for jobs that have only one qualification—to be attractive. And then, surprise they are “forced” to allow men to look and gawk at them. Everyone move on, there’s nothing here.
10
@ Kevin. Excuse me, they were kids. They were trying to make some money so they could live. You have no idea how skilled or unskilled they’ll become. The fact that you think you do tells us everything we need to know about Donald Trump‘s America. It tells us everything we need to know about why the United States of America is going down the tubes. Make America Great Again. If there’s anything left of it.
1
Not kids. Adults.
1
"Gawk but don't touch" was not in the NFL playbook for these cheerleaders. They were groped and molested and NFL management told them to suck it up. They would have had better security in a strip club than at an NFL game.
With all these stories being told and still nothing being done by the NFL it’s obvious they don’t care or value women. I think the NFL is out of touch with America in general most NFL owners are old white men of privilege. They have decided that black men and women have no right to be treated with respect or dignity. I hope the Players and cheerleaders decide to stand up for themselves and not show up for the games it’s time to stand up to rich old white men.
4
so Jackie Chambers worked the job for 10 years and now she's complaining. gimme a break. even if she didn't know what the job entailed when she took it, which I doubt, what about the 9 1/2 years she kept at it after she figured it out? anyone who takes a job like this has their reasons. Maybe they are looking for big money in tips, or to meet a wealthy man who will shower her with presents or maybe someone who could further a career. when you decide to dance with the devil you can rest assured you will have to pay the piper.
8
I think you’re misreading the article. She has been a model for ten years, she only spent one season with the team as modeling cheerleader.
2
You don’t get it.
Didn’t you read this and the last 200 articles about how women are naturally ignorant and have such low self-esteem they cannot be permitted to make their own choices. Left to themselves women will accept employment which causes angst to liberals. Geez- it’s clear as mud - women are stronger, smarter, and better than men - unless they’re attractive and make choices liberals find disconcerting - then they’re hopeless victims of male aggression.
2
Probably you're referring to those women in the South/ Red States. They're brought up with less ambition and more focus on being subservient to men. Focusing on looks is their meal ticket especially if they don't get educated, and limits their options to jobs like cheerleading.
We continue to send women the message that their value lies in their looks. We still stigmatize outspoken women and encourage girls to be "nice". Women are still often discouraged from STEM fields and are routinely paid less than men in general. Yet, when some women accept these messages and behave accordingly, we say the treatment they receive is their own fault. Disgusting.
4
So Trump and most NFL team owners have a big problem with NFL team members taking one knee during the national anthem, but don't seem to have a problem with escorts dressing in cheerleader costumes and mixing with the obnoxious fans. I guess that's no big surprise in this age of hypocrisy and double standards.
6
Wow, all this for $7.25 hr.
One might question what these ladies thought the job was going to be?!
Sad on lots of fronts.
Welcome to humanity.
Profit Uber Alles, and the marks that gladly demean themselves for it.
5
I’m all about the “me too” movement but this is ridiculous. These are minimum wage (or low paying) jobs therefore if you don’t like it quit and go get another minimum wage job where you are not a sex object. There are plenty out there.
6
"In an extra judging session, those women were required, like pageant contestants, to walk in bikinis in front of suite holders and sponsors who held score sheets. "
Required? I don't recall reading the part about these women having guns held to their heads.
If, as part of the application process, you, barely clad, voluntarily parade in front of men who hold up score sheets, you have zero grounds upon which to complain when you are, shockingly, treated like a sex object once you get the job. It is my understanding that employers are, upfront, required to tell employees the rate of pay, and so you also have zero grounds upon which to whine about your minimum-wage salary. Sorry, ladies, but we live in a capitalistic society. You are getting paid what the market bears, and the market says that women who do this sort of thing aren't worth much money. Which, really, is as things should be.
Come on, NYT. Really, come on. Of all the things to write about, consenting adults doing stupid stuff without any laws being broken has to be pretty far down the list. Is it sexist? Of course! Is it demeaning? Without a doubt. But it also is voluntary.
Nothing to see here.
9
“Produced a better game day experience”, huh?
For the Las Vegas show?
1
Virginia McCaskey, owner of the Chicago Bears, eliminated the women cheerleaders, called the Honey Bears.
9
Cheerleaders hired for their appearance? What is the world coming to?!
6
Sex sells. Well, it *used to*, anyway. But now that the Politically Correct Police has insinuated itself and its values into every niche of humanity, this is no longer the case. One waits with breathless anticipation for the bleak, grey world from which all allusion to sexuality has been viciously and ruthlessly expunged!
2
Why don't they hire a bunch of good-looking non-cheering men for the team's female fans to ogle, grope, and generally demean? Let's have some gender equality, folks, come on!!!!
1
"Scantily clad hostesses". Of course! The NFL wants sex object eye candy in those luxury suites (I have a REAL hard time believing they'd be "high up in the cheap seats").
The NFL is more disgusting (and seems a lot more desperate) every day. Sleazy is the word. No more for me, thank you very much. You want to watch a really entertaining (athletically) game? Women's rugby! No cheerleader outfits here, just athleticism, action, and no instant replay delays.
2
I want to feel bad for her, but then I went on her Facebook page and every photo she's in she barely has any clothes on. It looks like she's enjoying this gig, and good, more power to her. She looks phenomenal. But it's pure hypocrisy for her to pretend she is being taken advantage of. If she doesn't like it she should stop doing it and maybe take the pictures down so people can see her for more than just a sex symbol.
9
Aren’t these all consenting adults with a choice to participate or not? I’m sorry. I just can’t sympathize.
I wonder if NY Times will investigate high school cheerleading programs. I mean: this is where it all starts, doesn’t it?
7
I don't understand. These attractive women take a job where they know they will be scantily clad and gyrating in front of beer-soaked fans, and they are surprised that they were objectified? Are they disappointed to be on the B-squad? They were trying to get noticed and become models or actresses, yes?
I'm confused as to the point of this article.
10
"...primary task is to charm spectators at the game...The Ravens don’t hide the existence of a team of women — called the Playmakers ...An application for this season’s Playmakers asked for body measurements including bust size."
Gross. We have got to stop feeding into the idea that women exist solely for the male gaze and to stroke the male ego.
2
"As a noncheering cheerleader for the Texans last season, Jackie Chambers was generally on the field only for player introductions and the national anthem."
Take a knee Jackie.
2
Welcome to the National Fascism League, where exploiting and silencing women’s bodies, minority labor, players’ brains, purchased patriotism, and fans’ pocketbooks are all part of just another day at the office. Everyone gets scraps while the league, owners, and TV stations rake in the loot.
1
Have women not yet raised their consciousness and taken personal responsibility since the Me Too Movement? Minimum wage pay to be pawned by and show off your body to drunk, childish men? Pay checks from brain dead male NFL employers? Women actors still showing most of their bodies in super low cut, see-through dresses while complaining about the likes of the Harvey Weinsteins in the film industry? Are we supposed to feel sorry for them or come to their aid? Puleez. What is the point of this article? Perhaps it's that women still do not yet value themselves enough? You tell me.
2
Well, I gotta admit, it does sound sleazy. These women are obviously exploited and pimped out to drunken men who can't keep their hands to themselves. What a dreary and depressing experience.
6
This is a sport that has emphatically wrapped itself in pseudo-patriotism, ignored the brain damage suffered by it's participants, and subjects women to groping by it's drunken fans for minimum wage. No wonder Trump is such a big supporter.
8
Parents, is time to put your kids into other sports. Forget about Football (the American kind). What about Football (the world kind, aka soccer)? Girl of boy he/she will have a real chance to play rather than just cheer or get their brains mushed up.
7
It’s called choice, ladies. You make it or you don’t. Sorry, you aren’t victims here.
5
Yeah, right, a lot of victim-blaming going on here... Allowing women to be abused is not OK; they did NOT sign up for that.
It's always easy for young/white/upper class/rich men to believe that jobs are easy to find.
I remember when - with a decade of supervisory experience on top of loads of experience and credentials that are not garden-variety - my new manager thought I would be great at doing the documentation while the guys did the technical work.
3
Another yuge contribution to the culture brought to by our patriotic concussionball profiteers.
3
Don't you just love team sports?
There are few things in life as sexist, useless, and unnecessary as NFL cheerleaders. I have never heard a fellow fan say anything about a particular woman in a cheer outfit other than she's hot. Fans have zero interest in this retrograde show.
10
Whatever you do people, don't you dare take a knee. You will lose your career and you will be fined...just stand there and be piece of cheese cake.
7
The NFL keeps getting grosser and grosser . . . from treating players’ brains as commodities, to faux nationalism and exaggerated militarism, to pandering to an equally gross Trump, to treating cheerleaders like slaves and sexual marketing props . . .
I can’t bring myself to care about the NFL at all anymore. Too gross.
11
I'm sure there are some high-rollers in the fancy seats who are gay or who are straight women. Do they get mostly naked sexy men hanging out with them for viewing pleasure? Or is this a thing for straight guys?
5
So it is discrimination if you ask a person's age, but okay to demand BUST measurements? These people are disgusting.
3
I always wished we had legalized prostitution in our beloved US of A. I am glad that at least our beloved rich’n’famous have access to it.
1
The NFL, part of a culture that is disappearing, kind of the same way as the Catholic Church. Created as a child of the industrial revolution, the various military expeditions of the US lent American football its lingo. And ethos. Anonymous supermen beating the hell out of each other for corporate profit. Decades of subverting medical issues, protecting players from the law for all but the worst of off field behaviours, corruption in education and stadium development. It is a racket with funny clothes, like the Church. The world turns and society needs neither the costs or discomfort of this beast from the past.
5
Well said.
1
I never get (fully) why pedophiles go to jail - for collecting pictures on their computers - but owners/stockholders/businesses that outright sell the "sex" and "nakedness," of someone's children (at another age) just laugh all the way to the bank. Seems like if one is bad (and it is), the other is somewhere in the same ballpark too. And, no, I don't think all these girls/women know what they're getting into - being bamboozled all their lives to "sell watcha got..." I went to High School and College - plenty of girls "nice enough" looking there focused exclusively on getting ahead using "enhanced" looks, "playing nice," and, looking for the "right" guy ($$$). Some career path - but I saw where they got the notion. Damn near everywhere there was a beer sign, fancy car, sports event...
2
Does every team have these "ambassadors" or "non-cheering cheerleaders"? If not, which teams have not adopted this practice?
I hope Ms. Macur or someone else can provide that answer.
Before 2008, finance companies in NYC held parties called Fashion and Finance mixers. Men in finance were invited, and female models were also invited. This partially explains why so many former models are married to Wall Street guys. Those parties no longer happen. What better way to meet rich men than to be a hostess for luxury suites? If we assume that former beauty queens are trying to land husbands in the 1%, the best way to meet those men is to do jobs like this, or to sell Mercedes or Astons or Patek watches ski condos in Colorado. Cheerleaders interact with rich athletes. These hostess types interact with rich spectators. I assume these women (non-cheerleaders) are 5 to 10 years older than the average cheerleader.
4
Yet the very same NFL deems it sanctionable to protest those who violate the true meaning of the flag and the National Anthem by targeting and killing fellow citizens solely on the basis of their race. The hypocrisy is stunning!
1
Curious what the answe is:
(A) eliminate the jobs altogether (and any similar employment that is premised on physical attributes - prostitution, modeling, pornography, escort services, etc) since all are premised on objectification and sexual gratification, and society should not value such premises.
(B) force non-cheer cheerleaders to dress in modest attire (maybe the handmaiden outfit?) since we cannot assume either the employee or customer has any ability to decide for herself or himself whether the job is appropriate.
(C) have the non-cheer cheerleaders strike, and see if they can get better wages and benefits. If they can’t, that might confirm the value of the labor.
(D) assume people have some semblance of self-worth and freedom of choice, and can decide for herself or himself whether the job is worth it, knowing that if customers cross lines by touching or inappropriate comments, there is a remedy and the focus of articles like this should be on enforcing existing remedies rather than trying to impose pseudo-Victorian morals.
4
I wasn't glued to the tube every weekend, but maybe I spent too much time watching football last season. I should do more reading this year, maybe take up a hobby.
7
This article is more an obvious general social comment than an indictment of corporate NFL practices. It reports essentially that some football teams use attractive women to mingle with preferred fans and assist in the sale of suites and merchandise. Across corporate America, you can find similar examples of companies using attractive women, and men in some cases, to sell products or interact with potential customers. The women freely choose to be employed in this capacity. There are no allegations that the teams defrauded them about their duties and if it did, the women could resign. The article does not allege that wage laws are being violated or that there is involuntary servitude. The women are not compensated well and their duties are perfunctory; their main talent is that they are attractive. If these women had STEM skills or were trained in another skilled capacity, even high end modeling, they could secure alternative employment. Until society changes, however, companies will continue to hire attractive individuals for such low end skills such as receptionists, personal attendants and low end sales positions based upon their physical attributes. And I am not sure that given the human instincts that are involved, this practice will ever change or that there is necessarily an issue here.
24
As a woman who invested in lots and lots of STEM training, rationalizing to myself the hard work would compensate for my large nose and thick waist, I can assure you that it is not a golden ticket to success. The male dominated fields of science and engineering I worken in for decades, especially those disciplines with lots of field research, still promoted attractive young women who slept with the boss over expertise in physics!
"Non cheering" cheerleader/model, or post-doc in chemical oceanography, or the wrong skin color, women (and many men too) suffer from demeaning treatment in the workplace. Sure we can just quit. But what options are left? Marrying a rich old man, who needed a full time caregiver, like my widowed grandmother had to do?
10
If the cheer-models are sales reps they should push to get a commission on those suites!
57
I'm not sure the woman who hopes to join a class-action lawsuit against the management will be able to, under the recent Supreme Court ruling for Epic Systems v. Lewis. I would be surprised if the team didn't put an arbitration clause in these apparently very exploitive contracts.
Dancers seem to enjoy cheerleading to the point where they're willing to put up with this exploitation just to get a better chance at a successful audition. There needs to be a better outlet for this kind of dance talent, which is so enjoyable to watch. It doesn't have to be tied to the male sports industry complex. Competitive cheering, whose teams are independent, has provisional status at the Olympics. These kinds of dance styles can grow.
8
I'm struggling to understand why anyone would expose herself to the leering and sticky fingers unless they had to. Is it about being recognized for looks? Please, help me to understand!
29
It's because they signed a contract without knowing about that aspect of the job. By the time they find out, they're involved with the team and their co-workers, are probably somewhat psychologically beaten down, and don't want to create the negative repercussions of leaving a job on bad terms. The employers probably have pull in the community.
14
Thank you, Belmontian.
they knew what the job was. it was blatantly obvious. the took it for the opportunity to make big money in tips or perhaps meet a wealthy man or someone who could advance a career. and when it doesn't happen, especially now in the age of #metoo, they cry foul.
4
The NFL needs to work on their image. I'm surprised that the NFL has not made policy changes to improve the working conditions of the cheerleaders. Having cheerleaders is fine, but the poor work environment and harassment need to stop. At some point fans will start leaving the sport. If nothing else, that should get the NFLs attention.
14
Wow. Really blowing the lid off the dark side of cheerleading. "Fake Enthusiasm for Hire".
I don't want to burst anyone's bubble but Pro-Wrestling....
19
A wonderful wholesome tradition from the NFL, where brains come last.
71
I am dismayed by all the comments that are critical of the women.
20
I think many of the comments are not critical of the women per se, but rather are emphasizing that women need to place our own interests first. Cheerleading as a job does not do that; it is by its nature about looking sexy, dancing in front of crowds, keeping mostly male fans "happy," etc. Women need to take responsibility at some point for the avenues they pursue. Cheerleading is a career that is not and has never been about women's strengths, intelligence, ability, etc. Women need to think about how their choices continue status quo gender exploitation and, by rejecting those, begin to chance not just their own lives but those of all women.
6
When I was hired as an engineer, my employer only wanted me for my brains. I was objectified for a body part! The horror!
17
That's horrible, I get it, I am sorry. Did your brain get groped by a customer or taped down to be flatter by your supervisor? Did it get only $7.25 an hour?
7
Like other posters, I simply don't understand why these women pursued these jobs. If they find the work demeaning and low-paying why not just find some other line of work?
Don't play the victim card. Simply find something else to do.
97
This isn’t about hiring beautiful people to be hostesses, it’s about allowing physical abuse to occur and looking the other way. Groping shouldn’t only result in someone having to sacrifice their ridiculously expensive box, security should also help any young lady that is a victim file charges. The league is obligated to support it’s minimum-wage employees every bit as much as it does it’s multi million dollar athletes.
143
These practices are vile and disgusting, but we need to focus on building a culture in which everyone — including the women who pursue these positions — reject the notion that women are accessories to men in sport or in life.
55
Why are there not good-looking guys hired too?
It all seems discriminatory.
21
Technic....because not even the majority of the minority numbers of the female fan base that goes to games wants to see that. They have more pride then men.
8
Hey, here's an idea to get up the election turnout.
Cheerleaders at the polling booths.
Call them poll dancers.
217
Brilliant! Bravo!!!
8
you win!
6
Unfortunately, they save that for the fancy donor parties.
5
Maybe they can place some of the non-starter players in the stands to woo the women!
19
Darn it - I fell for the click bait. Just what we need today - another article about NFL cheerleaders. But this one is even better, because it focuses on cheerleader impostors!
5
Should have done better academically in high school and found a different 'job'.
Is someone forcing these people to do this work?
21
There are only so many jobs for beauty queens without other job skills.
18
These women working for professional sports teams are just the tip of the iceberg on the ever expanding "atmosphere model" business in our evermore cringingly shallow appearance obsessed society. There is a whole industry now in place that - for a price - will provide you with "beautiful people" to attend your corporate or even personal events. The models mostly attractive women but some men are paid about $ 50-200 and hour to attend functions chat up attendees and pretend they are "friends" of the people hosting the party. They even sign NDAs so they won't reveal their beauty is merely being borrowed. They are given names to memorize and background material to make the illusion seem real. "Models in Tech" is a booming example in social skills deficient San Francisco. So. Who wants to bet these kids are getting harassed? If so what should the consequences be and whose responsible for what? And how increasingly pathetic from all sides is all this getting?
74
$200 to go talk to people at a party? How do I sign up?! (And how is this more valuable than, say, TEACHING, a field in which no one is making $200/hour?! That's the real tragedy here...)
3
Hey, long time fan here...since the 70's. I'm not watching your stupid league anymore. Have a great time sucking money from someone else.
92
I can't but think that that NFL thinks it's the a replacement for the Playboy clubs. Calling the NFL owners pimps is demeaning to Pimps who at least at some lever have to protect their stable.
14
You're right NYT, this is a travesty! We must ban women from using their looks or their sexuality to make money. Prison sentences for the violators. In fact, maybe we should make women cover up like some other societies just so they're not tempted to trade on their looks.
21
That would be nice if it worked, but unfortunately men still rape women in burkas sometimes. You know, for showing ankle and stuff.
1
Non-story. No one is being forced to do this job. Who cares.
66
1) no surprise that the “redskins” racists owners & fans are also sexist
2) no surprise that a women’s appearance is sexually attractive to men
3) no surprise that sex sells
4) Big Surprise is that so many young women put themselves in such a position. Why are they doing this? What are their reasons? Do they have no other options? Do they think this is a stepping stone?
My beautiful model magna cum laude daughter is off to med school, not an NFL lapdance.
54
Do you see what you did there? You actually are telling your daughter that women are worth less than men. It is no surprise indeed that women's appearance are sexually attractive to men, but why do we assume that women in a job (even one designed to appeal to men) must suffer (and deserve) disrespect and harassment just because of that fact? Not everyone--male or female--can or should go to medical school. That's great about your daughter, but she still has to walk around in a world that, by your reasoning, will not ever see her as a whole person, not in spite of her distance from those women career-wise, but because we normalize that kind of behavior of men against women.
4
Is some circles this is known as human trafficking.
32
Human trafficking, really? Your comment is an enormous insult to people who have suffered from the tragedy of actually being trafficked. This is nothing of the sort.
21
@Sparky
You know, you're right. And I apologize for the over exaggeration. However, this is exploitation. And that isn't an exaggeration.
6
Chicago Guy,
It's not exploitation, either. When willing adults engage in activities wherein they are made aware upfront of the wages paid and are free to leave at any time, that's capitalism. Exploitation? Go find a real cause, perhaps in an Asian sweatshop where kids work long hours for meager pay so that they can eat while you and I can buy dress shirts for less than $30.
3
For once I agree with the Times' obvious cultural agenda. The NFL teams should just eliminate their "cheerleaders" and "hostesses".
96
Are there really women willing to submit themselves to this kind of exploitation? They must really be hard up for a job.
15
"It’s a really big secret..."
Yeah, right, a highly coveted scoop. Football fans like looking at pretty girls, so NFL teams hire pretty girls. I am simply floored.
Are there actually people who care about this?
NYT, please send your reporters out to do real news work instead of manufacturing insubstantial social-justice-crusade fluff.
142
What's with the NYT fixation on this issue? These woman sign up for a job to be a sex object and then complain that they're being objectified?
291
Yeah, it seems like it's fairly clear why you're being hired for this job, it's not exactly a bait and switch.
50
They also seem to be giving the NBA a pass on the young women teams hire to provide entertainment for the fans.
If it wasn't for the television broadcasters who seem to have a need to zoom in on the cleavage of the cheerleaders during games, no viewer would know they existed. The elimination of cheerleaders would not cause a drop in attendance at games or less television viewers.
9
They signed up to entertain, not be humiliated and disrespected. Why do you assume those two things cannot be mutually exclusive? Where does that come from? Genuinely curious.
39
These women may be beautiful but they have very low self esteem otherwise they won't bother to work under such conditions. There are many ways to work for charities without having to put up with such abuse from men. The NFL also knows better than to treat women this way. But is the women keep allowing it, they will keep doing it.
13
Yes, labor movements are really big and empowered right now!
5
It's called pimping... NFL: just another john making money off women's' looks, sexually....
154
Well, if the NFL is pimping for these voluntary employees . . . what does that make them?
4
While this is all very demeaning to women, what is the solution? We allow strip clubs, escort services that do not explicitly sell sex, and modeling of all sorts, which includes jobs like this. We do not regulate who women can engage in sexual behavior with, or how they dress. We have laws against creating a hostile work environment, and laws against sexual assault, but these positions exist despite those laws because the women, although perhaps initially surprised, continue to work without filing complaints. Rich men are buying time and contact with attractive women in a sexualized environment, not unlike they can do at a strip club. Women agree to the terms of employment. In a free society, what grounds do we have to stop this behavior at an NFL game? Those upset with this behavior can boycott the NFL, as I'm sure they boycott strip clubs, but I don't see that making a difference. Are people really surprised that rich men hire scantily clad women to spend time with them, and young women agree to do this? This may be the 21st century, but humanity has not changed. Singling out the NFL is silly. I don't watch anymore because of the brain damage to young men, not because cheerleaders and models are treated any different than in a dozen other facets of the entertainment industry.
48
I don't get the impression that the goal of these articles is to make these activities illegal, but rather to shine the light of day on them so that the public knows how these women are treated (and so the women know what they're getting into*).
*(yes, there is an agreement to be signed, but it probably doesn't say anything like "management reserves the right to ignore any and all complaints of inappropriate remarks or touching.") (I haven't read one though --- just guessing)
62
Interesting point. I suggest you try to grope the next stripper at your neighborhood strip club without permission (or paying) and see what happens. That's kind of part of the point, isn't it? If these women had been given the choice and given a cut of the money in exchange for that choice (to ramp up the "entertainment", let's say) maybe there wouldn't be a problem. Let women monetize their sexuality and reap the rewards for it instead of paying them less than their worth and demeaning them for it.
11
What precisely stops these attractive, young women from quitting a demeaning and awful job where they get groped for a lousy $7.25 an hour? In some employment abuse cases, you can argue the employee NEEDS the job desperately to survive, but these young ladies are pretty enough to get other, far better paying work. Heck, I have to pay $10 (in the Midwest!) for a teenage baby sitter. What kind of NFL job pays LESS than babysitting and why would anyone take such a job?
1
These complaints ring hollow. These women have no dance or cheer skills; they signed up to be minimum wage spokesmodels, and were treated as such. Perhaps they should value themselves more and not agree to work in such circumstances. If you want to interact with children, you can make more than $7.25 per hour as a babysitter.
286
False argument. The complaint here was not about the pay. And the lines "minimum wage spokesmodels" and "were treated as such" are typical of those who seek to dehumanize victims of oppression and take the spotlight off the offenders. Wonderful propaganda.
16
Agreed. Is Nicoles18 suggesting that poorly paid people don't have the right to feel safe and respected at work?
2
Your misogyny is showing.
Your argument stands that it is okay to treat low-wage women poorly. In a modern, decent society, it is not acceptable to treat anyone - no matter how low their pay - poorly. Yours is an elitist attitude . . . especially the line about working somewhere else if they don't like how they are treated. (This used to be said of stewardesses - airline attendants -, waitresses, secretaries, etc. who worked in male-dominated industries and experienced sexual-harassment.) To add insult to injury, you suggest the women work in another, low-paid, underappreciated, female-dominated industry - caring for children.
Stop blaming the women.
"They signed up to be minimum wage spokesmodels, and were treated as such."
11
I can certainly see why these women might feel demeaned and objectified. What is confusing is why they would allow themselves to be placed in these situations once their roles were made clear. I can imagine that many of them would have other options. It is sad if they feel they only have their looks to trade on in the world of work. How these football teams use these women is a responsibility of the team, the fact that these women stay in these jobs in spite of what is asked of them is their responsibility.
107
Maybe they DON'T have other options! Maybe they don't have the IQ, educational attainment, or even attention span to do much of anything else. And while they don't deserve to be groped or mistreated in any way, they probably do enjoy being looked at.
3
Proud to be a fan of the Steelers, which doesn't objectify women by not having cheerleaders at all.
280
OTOH, the Steelers kept Roethlisberger on the roster after he was credibly accused of rape in two separate incidents. So, there's that.
14
Are you serious, Marco?
You have a quarterback, Ben Rothlisberger who has been accused not once but twice of rape and sexual assault. Who was suspended by the NFL (who doesn't even suspend wife beaters) for violating the decency clause of his contract. Who prosecutors in Pittsburgh said there was evidence of rape, just not enough to go to trial. Said alleged rapist settled civil suits out of court to avoid trial and loss of his Nike contract.
What did the Steelers do in response? Extend his contract, of course. That organization is despicable.
1
What a crummy league: rampant sexism, a business plan based on the reality that many players will suffer from injuries to their brains, and enforced faux "patriotism."
513
Don't blame the league. Blame the fans that pay to attend and those that watch the games on TV. Without viewers, that crummy league wouldn't exist.
8
Fine, Mr. Lieberman. Here's the solution: Don't watch.
I don't watch, either, not because of the sexism or brain damage, but because I don't happen to like football. But I would never deign to tell consenting adults what they should or should not do, assuming no laws are broken.
3
I love the strategy and play of the game. But for the reasons you stated, I will no longer watch the NFL. In America a consumer choice is like a vote. Seems like it can’t change things sometimes, but it can.
14
I hope we are getting to the point where people start to see how ridiculous it is to have scantily clad women cheering for sports teams. Maybe if guys saw Magic Mike types gyrating at WNBA games and 'entertaining' execs in private boxes they might understand?
228
do the women who take these jobs have no responsibility over themselves? maybe women should not apply for or take these jobs. if no women are willing to do it, the job won't be there.
7
The problem is that there are two many women who want to cheer for sports teams while scantily clad. They even want to do it for free (at the pro or college level). What's up with that?
11
For that, unfortunately, there would have to be a critical mass of guys who watch or even think about the WNBA, and there is not.
2
Many people comment here about how these women know what they are getting into, or ask why they would even apply for these jobs...
Perhaps because substantive employment for women is so limited, or their pursuit of STEM related fields is so often discouraged by their parents or peers, or because in our current political environment woman are highly undervalued, or that so many of them were brainwashed into conforming with gender stereotypes from an early age.
We blame them yet leave them no viable alternatives and, when we do, they are harassed, underpaid and under appreciated for having their own thoughts and ideas.
153
I wish I could agree with you. But I do not.
(1) I had the same idea. So, for last 20+ yrs, I hired ~10+ smart women with BA degrees (non-STEM) whom are interested in science ( at least that is what they said) and trained them for 1-2 years to direct them to an engineer position.
None of them is with me now and I gave up hiring non-STEM @ 2015. The reason? They found that this STEM things ( Our stuff is based on Quantum Mechanics) are really difficult for them to understand. And frankly, it appears that they have better things to do with their time such as hair style, fashion, and getting rich man (or whatever you see in a female magazine and websites) rather than empowering themselves.
(2) There are many laws protecting woman in work place. I am not convinced that it helps women to get jobs. Because the following Employment Law is a big thing. For HR, it is not a gender issue. It is a risk assessment issue.
Hiring A candidate means walking on egg-shells in terms of the Employment Laws, while hiring B candidate means no such thing. Which one would you pick?
(3) I do get depressed whenever I go to a bookstore/magazine section. Female section is all about sex, feelings, fashion and how to catch a guy. In that sense, I agree with you.
Now I have changed the direction of my contribution -Helping humiliated children for lack of $2.60 lunch money.
12
You're seriously saying that there are no viable alternatives to cheerleading for women? Really?
27
Actually, it reads more like these women were strung along under the guise that they could one day make the actual cheerleading team. Of course, team management probably had no intention of ever promoting these women to that next level. This is bad faith at best and fraud at worst.
13
How about if we start by eliminating cheer-leading for young girls. Find a sport or other activity for girls that has a purpose other than cheering for the guys. Then they stand a better chance of growing up as confident women who have better things to do than be groped and ogled by a bunch of drunks.
Yes, I know that kids cheer-leading is athletic, but so is gymnastics or any other sport. There are lots of ways to be active that don't require glitter and makeup for children.
445
My daughter decided to be a cheerleader her sophomore year in high school. I had reservations, but we talked it over and (to a degree) I feel it is important to have kids make their own choices and follow through so she did it. I think overall it has been a good thing. She has gained confidence in performing in front of a crowd. Her cheer team is not just a bunch of skinny blonde girls, and is pretty inclusive. I don't know, I think it is dismissive to say cheerleading should be gotten rid of. Different strokes for different folks right? And they also cheer at the Girls Basketball team as well as the boys team.
22
Janet,
You must not know any high school or college cheerleaders. It is not about cheering for the guys. That is incidental as far as most cheerleaders are concerned. It is about performing skillful or graceful routines, and showing school spirit. And there is nothing wrong with any of that, nor should the PC thought police seek to eliminate it. The anti-cheerleading sentiment is ultimately anti-female: it treats feminine interests as somehow second rate.
17
Jose, Cheerleading is not "a feminine interest." It is a socially constructed job that asks women to jump around in short skirts, often doing horribly risky moves, to entertain crowds at athletic events. It is sold to girls as "athletic" and "for them" and "outgoing," but if girls are interested in it, more than likely this is because they look good, get attention, and are seen as "popular" girls (I know; I wanted to cheer in high school before I realized that it was pitting girls against other girls, objectifying, and demeaning). Girls are not interested in it because it is somehow by its nature a "feminine interest."
2
Every time the NYT runs one of these articles (and for whatever reason, their favorite whipping post seems to be NFL cheerleaders), I write in to bring up the Green Bay Packers. Here you have a professional football team that uses local high school and college cheerleaders to connect to the community. Oh, and the team itself is a non-profit that is owned by the fans and donates all excess profits. No money making exploitative scheme here! Maybe this is a model to be emulated? Hmm.
140
Austin, they're doing a series, and I'm glad of it. I never knew about the fake cheerleaders. Apparently, they're exploited even more than the real ones.
Tell the Packers story every time. They should always make it a Times Pick.
I'm not a football fan. The CTE controversy turned me away years ago. But, it's nice to know the game can be played without the sleaze factor.
13
I love the Packers. They’ve managed to retain the true spirit of the game.
4
The video for the Redskin's suite owners network linked in this article is definitely worth a watch. It's a poorly produced six minute video selling a truly depressing looking experience to the most wealthy and vacuous among us.
39
I just watched the six-minute video. It’s at least five minutes too long and very cheaply done (looks and sounds like it was shot and cut on a phone). In many of the shots, the scantily-clad women look so out of place against the rest of the scene that it’s goofy. The kind of person who immediately came to mind as “target market” is Michael Scott of Dunder Mifflin.
3
This is sad. I don't watch the NFL and I really think the whole thing is staged. Unfortunately I am in the minority. Things would have to get really bad for these poor women for anything to get any better. Also unfortunate, for every women who quits, there would be 10 who would give an arm to join. That is just the nature of this so called sport!
13
"That is just the nature of this so called sport!"
No its called money, power, and fame. But, not necessarily in that order.
5
The NFL is definitely not WWE, however, it is definitely manipulated at a political level.
1
Please excuse my lack of sympathy here. Are they demanding equal pay for equal work? Or just more pay to do the job they were fully aware that they would be doing? Because, they aren’t doing equivalent work to anyone else on the field or even behind the scenes.
We are essentially saying that good looks should be worth more because they are paid to just stand there and look pretty. Galavanting with the hopes of snagging a wealthy attendee is the dream, until you don’t. As an applicant for a non cheering cheerleader, there is an expectation that you would be a hostess of some sort. Everyone knows this. Even the article compares them to hooters waitresses. As such, it would be hard for a Hooters waitress to say that, it was demeaning. You can wait tables at any other place where you aren’t required to wear a uniform which shows everything.
As women, there seems to be no accountability here. You are told the salary, you are told the job responsibility and it is an at will position. Therefore, you are not a victim!
24
Why pick on the NFL on this issue? I watch television news, and most stations put eye candy news casters on, I look at a college catalog and it features the most attractive teachers in the materials, and then there are Victoria's Secret ads. Of course, all of these women are being exploited. Paying paltry wages is an embarrassment to the NFL, which swims in money, but attractive women and marketing started the day capitalism was born. But, I am glad the Times finally noticed.
20