SOC 389-000: Spec Tops In Sociology: Sociology of Sports (Spring 2010)

Semester Details: In the spring of 2007, radio host Don Imus described the Rutgers women's basketball team as "nappy headed hoes."   Such a comment not only sparked immense outrage across a variety of communities but brought to the forefront a host of sociological questions regarding the relationship between sports and issues of identity and inequality.  For example, how does such a remark serve to perpetuate racism within athletic arenas?  What are the ways in which the media depicts female athletes and what are the consequences of sexism on women and men in sports?  How do sports solidify the link between masculinity and power?  How does homophobia impact athletes’ gendered performances on the playing field?  In this course, we will explore how race, gender, class, and sexuality are constructed and contested within and around the arena of sport.  We will be using sports as a site to explore issues of access, identity, and inequality from childhood through adulthood through such questions as:  Why don’t more men cheerlead and more women play football?  Why are certain sports seemingly dominated by athletes of a certain race?  Why can’t a track star keep her medals simply because she is intersexed?  Why can’t white men jump?  We will also be exploring how sport has been and continues to be used by athletes as a mechanism for empowerment, mobility, and success.