Product Description From small-town life to the national stage, from the boardroom to Capitol Hill, athletic contests help define what we mean in America by "success." And by keeping women from "playing with the boys" on the grounds that they are inherently inferior to men, society relegates them to second-class status in American life. In this forcefully argued book, Eileen McDonagh and Laura Pappano show in vivid detail how women have been unfairly excluded from participating in sports on an equal footing with men. Using dozens of powerful examples from the world of contemporary American athletics--girls and women trying to break through in football, ice hockey, wrestling, and baseball to name just a few--the authors show that sex differences are not sufficient to warrant women's coercive exclusion from competing with men; that some sex-group differences actually confer a sports advantage to women; and that "special rules" for women in sports do not simply reflect the "differences" between the sexes, but actively create and reinforce a view that women as a group are inherently inferior to men--even when women clearly are not. For instance, women's bodies give them a physiological advantage in endurance sports like the ultra-marathon and distance swimming. So, why do so many Olympic events--from swimming to skiing to running to bike racing--have shorter races for women than men? Likewise, why are women's tennis matches limited to three sets while men's are best-of-fives? This book shows how sex-segregated sports policies, instead of reflecting sex-group differences, in fact construct them. An original and provocative argument to level the athletic playing field, Playing with the Boys issues a clarion call for sex-sensible policies in sports as a crucial step toward achieving social, economic, and political equality for men and women in our society.
Enlightening and Provocative July 6, 2008 This is a courageous book. The Eileen McDonagh and Laura Pappano illustrate how our stereotypical thinking about Women in sports can diminish not only the great accomplishments of women athletes, but shows how our views have been shaped by unsportman-like events in politics and by the media. This is not about men vs women, or a treatise on how the sexes should compete. It is simply a well researched and common sense read that challenges us to re think what sports is all about in America. It keeps the focus on what is important; Sports.
A fascinating take on sports in American society May 14, 2008 Even if you don't like sports, you should read this book because it is about a lot more than games. It argues powerfully that sports matters in American society and that it is an entrenched bastion of sex segregated policies that perpetuate false assumptions that women are inferior to men. Yes, of course , there are sex group differences, but those differences don't explain the myriad rules, regulations, and prohibitions that make a person's sex, rather than ability, the first criterion when assigning team membership. While you can probably guess at the obvious in ridiculous sex segregation (billiards, for example) there are also stories and abilities that will surprise you. Read it.
Segregation is Un-American March 27, 2008 0 out of 1 found this review helpful
Proponents of racial segregation more often than not protested that their motivation was not prejudice or fear but science fact. The races were so different that their integration would be detrimental to everybody. Now nobody makes that argument -- about race. The same arguments are still fashionable (and still wrong) when sex segregation is the subject of debate. I suspect that in a few generations our "no girls allowed" sports teams will seem about as sensible as "whites only" drinking fountains. McDonagh and Pappano's book is eye-opening and breath-taking, one of the most urgent calls to civil-rights action I have heard in my life.
So you think you've considered every angle on gender and sports? January 10, 2008 Well, think again. Eileen McDonagh and Laura Pappano have produced a highly provocative and stimulating thesis opposed to segregated boys and girls sports. You may not agree with the conclusion but careful readers of this argument will develop a respect their originality, seamless logic and compelling data and are likely to reconsider long-held beliefs on this subject.
Don't Pass This Up!! January 9, 2008 1 out of 2 found this review helpful
Hooray for McDonagh and Pompano, they clearly have done their homework. They articulate the meaning of "Why Separate is Not Equal in Sports". This book makes you reassess what you thought you knew. Being on a women's ice hockey team I feel this book really is uplifting and hits home in how sports is really a battlefield in the fight for gender equality, and that it encourages sex integration rather than sex segregation. Also, it depicts the attitudes of our culture toward women as they have strived to achieve equality in this country. "The writers have achieved an absorbing read for anyone interested in women's journey toward sports equality."
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