Radical Cheerleaders Research Paper

Tensions were high. Her nerves were frazzled. The crowd was quiet, waiting to hear the name of the team who was to move on to nationals. Only two teams in the division would be moving on. The crowd went wild as the announcer said, “And moving on to the 2009 Cheerleading Nationals will be the Kankakee Valley Kougars!”

"Team Spirit" by Donna Tartt is an enthralling reflective memoir that delves into the intricacies of inequality and injustice through the masterful use of symbolism and techniques. Tartt's narrative skillfully unveils her experiences as a cheerleader, acting as a powerful lens to scrutinize the dynamics of inequality within the high school and social hierarchy. Beyond the veneer of glamour associated with cheerleading, Tartt unravels a complex web of social and economic categorization, serving as a microcosm for broader societal issues. Tartt skillfully illuminates injustice through the divisive categorization of the cheerleading squad into "snobs" and "sluts," revealing deep-seated social inequality within the microcosm of high school life. This division extends beyond economic differences, encapsulating societal standards and gender-class expectations.

Throughout the article various tone changes occur. During the introduction, there is a negative attitude that is apparent. The author is reflecting on Erykah Ward’s, a former gymnast, initial reactions to becoming a cheerleader. Ward’s responses were derogatory and stereotypical; she even stated at the end of the introduction, “I’ll want to kill them all” at the idea of becoming a cheerleader. She uses common stereotypes against cheerleaders such as “jumping around” and “uneducated.” All of the sudden, the article’s tone changes to a positive voice. The author is now praising cheerleading and cheerleaders for what they must endure. A couple sentences of ago the author was attacking cheerleading, but now he is saying, “competitive cheerleading is no joke.” This new admiring tone remains throughout the rest of the article and seems to get more passionate the further in detail he goes. Overall, the article has an informal voice. Campo- Flores is using

The cheerleading squad is divided into the contrasting categories of "snobs" and "sluts". The categorisation of cheerleaders into these distinct groups is not merely a matter of economic disparity, but rather reflects entrenched societal standards dictating how girls should behave and present themselves. The "snobs," hailing from wealthier families, exude an air of exclusivity with the term having connotations of wealth, superiority and taste. while the "sluts," typically from less affluent backgrounds, have connotations of sexual promiscuity and are seen as shameful. Later on, the author mentioned that sluts were the “backbones of the stance” and the snob at the top.

One goal. One adventure. One family. Two coaches. Twenty athletes. 100 reasons and more why being a south Forsyth cheerleader is like no other experience.

Donna Tartt's "Team Spirit" offers a profound exploration of the less appealing facets of cheerleading culture, drawing from her personal experiences to craft a reflective memoir. Through meticulous employment of description and symbolism, Tartt unveils the inherent complexities of the cheerleading world, particularly emphasizing its entanglement with social hierarchies, gender biases, class discrimination, and conformity. The opening sentence, "The year I was a freshman cheerleader, I was reading 1984," serves as both a temporal anchor and a thematic foreshadowing. By situating Tartt's narrative in a specific time frame and introducing her identity as a freshman cheerleader alongside her reading of George Orwell's "1984," Tartt subtly lays

We spoke on Friday regarding the issue that surrounds the Dexter Cheerleading Squad in which they are not being allowed to go participate in the state cheer competition. The reason that they are not being allowed to participate seems vague in my opinion as I explained to you during our Friday conversation. The superintendent of our school district claimed during a parent meeting on 1/25/18 in which at least 5 parents made appearance, that since the job posting for coaches stipulated that it was a sideline cheer only, the cheer squad would not be allowed to go. When the question was asked, if any school regulations or policies existed that specified and backed up her decision, she claimed that none existed. Hence, that her athletic

Because of the physical demand, skill set needed, and the rules set to tumble, stunt, and jump, competitive cheerleading should be considered an official sport. Yet cheerleading has rules, guidelines, training, and many other things other sports also include. It also is definitely a physical and contact sport which has caused countless injuries throughout the years of the sports existance. But, most people only know cheerleading as sideline (school) cheerleading and have not had a glimpse into the world of competitive (All Star) cheerleading.

When you see us you probably think shorts skirts, big bows, the girls who are yelling on the sidelines of the basketball and football games showing school spirit, but we’re much more than that.

Many have seen her. Many know her. But who is the American cheerleader? Is she a blond haired, blue eyed sex symbol? Is she a drug-addicted girl with no brains and even fewer moral values? Maybe she is just your average, pretty, girl-next-door with a loud voice and lots of spirit. What is clearly true is that cheerleading and cheerleaders have evolved greatly over a century-long history. What started as one bold college student has turned into an activity with over 3 million participants (Brady 1); one that is backed by a $150 million industry (Williams 2). Modern cheerleading has come a long way from its historic roots, but large differences still exist between the iconic cheerleader, the stereotypical cheerleader, and the truth.

According to the magazine a Cheerleaders Guide to life, in the 1960’s, the National Football League teams began to organize professional cheerleading teams. It was the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders who gained the spotlight with their revealing outfits and sophisticated dance moves. They were first seen widely in Super Bowl X. This caused the image of cheerleaders to permanently change, with many other NFL teams emulating them. Most of the professional teams’ squads would be more accurately described as dance teams. They don’t usually lead cheers instead, they are crowd pleasers themselves.

From an outsiders perspective one may see brainless and beautiful robots, which scream and perform neat tricks. This is not the case from the inside; cheerleading is so much more than that. Many people are under the impression that cheerleading is not a sport. I am the voice of reasoning that will let you in, and I will show you that cheerleading, in fact, is a sport. Cheerleading requires much physical demand from the body just as any other sport would. Cheerleading, in general, is a team effort. There are many sides to cheerleading, which make it a versatile sport. When it comes to cheerleading there’s more to it than what meets the eye.

The women’s liberation movement (or feminism as it is now known) of the 1960s and 1970s touched every home, business, and school (WA, 705). The movement even touched the sports and entertainment industries, in fact, “There are few areas of contemporary life untouched by feminism” (WA, 717). The word feminism in the early 1960’s wasn’t often used and when it was it was used with condescension or hatred. However, in the late sixties that changed thanks to a new group of women. This new diverse group of women included the: young, old, heterosexual, lesbians, working class, and even the privileged. This diverse group came together and collectively created the second wave of feminism.

In her essay she relates the rise of feminist consciousness in the 1960s to numerous changes in American society, especially the rise of other protest movements. Echols said, “On September 7, 1968, the sixties came to that most apple-pie of American institutions, the Miss America Pageant” (Echols, 308). The reason she said this was because one hundred women’s liberation activists descended upon Atlantic City to protest the pageant’s promotion of physical attractiveness as the primary measure of women’s worth. From there, the protestors set up a “Freedom Trash Can” and filled it with high-heeled shoes, bras, girdles, hair curlers, false eyelashes, typing books, and representative copies of Cosmopolitan, Playboy, and Ladies Home Journal. They wanted to burn the contents but couldn’t because of the laws for bonfires on the boardwalk. Also, word had been leaked to the press that there would be a symbolic bra-burning. However, there were no bras burnt that day. But the image of the bra-burning, militant feminists remains part of our popular mythology about the women’s liberation movement. The Miss America demonstration represents an important moment in the history of the sixties as well as the women’s movement (Echols, 309-310).

Recent massive transnational protests named “Slutwalk” have marked a new form of rage from modern women’s right activists, stirring varied societal objections from both men and women towards feminists. From a defiant display of a thousand women dressing in underwear and fishnets storming down the streets of Toronto, to public declarations from well-known feminists stating they will never fight for the right to be called sluts, the re-appropriation of the word “slut” cannot succeed due to its inseparable negative connotations, and has reinforced the misunderstood image of feminism as a solely sexually aggressive absurd circus, alienating feminists from their political allies and hindering the progresses of other female rights agendas.