Ban Cheerleaders from Professional Sporting Events?

Professional cheerleaders cause men to think of women as objects. They exist on the sideline, wearing short skirts and looking pretty, whilst the male sports players are the heroes. This affects the way that men view women more generally. It makes them think that women are less important than men. Even where professional cheerleading squads contain men, this view of women is reinforced: male cheerleaders lift women and throw them around as if they are objects and only there for decoration.

The fact that cheerleaders want to do the activity is less important than the impact that it has on the way that people think about women in general. If I do something that seriously harms somebody else, that person should be able to stop me from doing it if the harm to me considerably outweighs the benefit to them. The fact that I want to be a cheerleader is outweighed by the harm caused to other women. Not only do men view women as inferior as a result of watching them on the sidelines, but women also begin to believe that they are inferior. They see cheerleaders supporting men and being paid a lot less than the male sports stars, and they begin to think that it is normal for women to be less important.

Professional cheerleaders are bad role models for women, and especially for teenagers who take part in cheerleading. They tend to wear shorter skirts and show more of their skin than college and high school cheerleaders. In addition, their routines tend to be more obviously sexual, and less focused on gymnastic stunts. This encourages young girls who do cheerleading as an extra-curricular activity at school to act in this way too. Banning professional cheerleaders would remove this bad influence.

The presence of cheerleaders standing on the side lines in men’s sports detracts from the success that women achieve as sports players in their own right. Women are very talented at sport, as demonstrated by Venus and Serena Williams in tennis, Paula Radcliff in athletics or Nastia Liukin in gymnastics. However, when people see cheerleaders they are more likely to view women’s role in sport as one confined to looking pretty on the sidelines. Women’s sport already receives a lot less coverage than men’s sport, and it is important to promote the success that women achieve. Professional cheerleaders detract from this.

Professional cheerleaders discourage lots of women, religious people and families from attending professional sports games. Many people do not want to watch women dancing on the pitch wearing skimpy clothes, so do not attend. Similarly, they do not bring their children because they think that it is inappropriate. Professional sports games are a great way to bring people together to form a community. It also encourages children to take part in sport themselves, improving their health. Professional cheerleaders are harmful because they discourage such attendance.

Professional cheerleaders cause lots of harm in terms of views of women, but add little to sport. It is clear that cheerleaders are not necessary to bring about audience participation. Fans at soccer matches in the UK are very animated without the presence of cheerleaders. The same is true at important tennis matches. Getting rid of professional cheerleaders would allow fans to focus properly on the game itself.