Why Can't We Have Females In Football?

I was born in the late 50’s. Evolved, invented and reinvented myself during the “turbulent 60’s.” Survived the 70’s, 80’s and questioned life in the 90’s and here I am in 2012, a hopefully-wiser and a more understanding man.

At least who “I” want to be.

I admit it. In the era I was born, men ruled society and the world at large. You know it. I know it. Even God knows it.

Things, for the most part, were pretty easy, smooth and easy-going. As long as the women, pardon me for using this term, “knew their place.”

I hated that term when I first knew what it meant. And today in 2012, my feelings toward this derogatory term against females hasn’t changed.

To finalize. In “my” day, men made the living, fought the wars, protected the family. And women, hey, let’s be honest. Stayed at home and quietly-bore the children, tended the home and told their men that “they were so happy to just be a wife and mother.”

For some women, being honest again, that might have been all they ever desired. But I have a sneaking suspicion that if the truth be told, even these devout homemakers would confess to wanting more if given the chance.

Don’t misunderstand. I am by no means knocking the title of “homemaker.” I am not. I mean, what man among us could do what these homemakers of the 50’s did on a daily basis and that includes bearing three or four children without missing a beat?

Certainly not me. If I had been a grown man in the 50’s and switched places with my wife, she would have starved, gone naked for lack of clean clothes and dealt with chronic depression every day of her life for my ineptness as a homemaker.

But remember before the 50’s when females who were married to the G.I’s who went to fight World War II, were “given the nod of equality?” Yes. These, pardon this term, gals, went right to work in factories manufacturing the “tools of war” as good, maybe better than most men.

Am I telling a lie here? Don’t think so.

With nicknames such as: “Riveting Rosie,” “Bombshell Barbara,” and others, these ladies went to work and turned out the machinery that their men used to preserve our freedom. And all without one complaint.

I guess if I were a woman of this timeframe, I might have been sucked-in with the “honor,” of working those ungodly hours giving up my self-esteem in the name of the “American Way of Life.” What choice would I have had but to suck it up and show-up at the “war plant?”

Skipping ahead a few years now. And still maintaining my written-vigil for women and women’s rights near and far, do you recall the time that women were actually “allowed” to play lawn tennis on their Jaded Age estates? What a lady-like amusement.

Then one day, one woman dared to do the unthinkable and also the impossible. She dared to climb into the cockpit of her airplane to fly around the world. Remember Amelia Earhart? She is still considered a “female rebel” to this very day for “bucking the male-only” society that was all around her.

Oh yeah. Rave on, “female rebels,” now that Amelia has flown her plane out of sight, now is the time for women (with raw guts) to take their place in professional tennis. Remember Mildred “Babe” Didrikson?

What a natural talent. Graced with “a” certain confident charm that stifled most male critics.

I guess with that single-slap to the male-dominated world, men everywhere let go sigh’s of relief that women had finally broken-into professional sports, but just tennis. That was it. Tennis was not that manly. A lady could still be a lady and lob the tennis ball as good as any man.

So now as time would have it, women were now involved in the sports arena in professional tennis, swimming, archery and other sports that didn’t require that much revolt.

No, I am not leaving out the heralded-Olympiad that saw two American women, Florence Griffith-Joyner, “Flo Jo,” once considered the fastest woman alive and Jackie Joyner-Kersee set new records with their amazing speed. This in itself was giving more of a spotlight to women athletes.

Am I telling a lie here? I think not.

Oh, yeah. I want to offer this brief observation about the WNBA, or “women’s national

basketball association.” Although this is a great venue for talented female basketball players, why don’t the NBA, the pro-basketball league that is owned, managed and ruled by men reach out to these same women basketball players to see if they would like to match their skills with the guys? Ever thought of that one?

Might be that some of the NBA male stars might be tad insecure having a female as a team mate and for what reason, I cannot say.

Do you hear that grinding sound? That is the sound of my teeth gnashing against one on another. I get this mindset each time I write, or even think of how our talented women athletes are actually being shut-out, ignored and just plain insulted by the all-male sports world.

Again, do you think I am lying?

Now I ask you the worn-out question, “what about football?”

Football? Did you say football, Kenneth? Yep. Football. High school, college and yes, professional football.

Before I talk about “me” wanting females in football, why not baseball? Hockey? Horse racing? Ever notice, sports fans, that most of our nation’s sports do not feature women athletes?

I guess I can say this again, “why?”

And now back to my “pro-rant for women in football,” you can criticize our federal government for a lot of things and in those complaints, you might be correct.

But our government did one thing that to me, was not only a noble thing, but a needed thing by passing legislation that any female of any level--high school or college, maybe the NFL, who knows, who wants to try-out for her team will be allowed to do by the school or team administration. Or be in direct-violation of the Equal Opportunity Act guaranteeing that a person, male or female, can try-out and participate in any given sport or activity without fear of being discriminated against based on their national origin, sex, color or sexual-preference.

Yes, guys, this was a tough pipe full to smoke at one time, right? I admit it. When I first learned of this, I, being the uneducated man that I was at the time, didn’t like this law.

But the more I thought it through, the more it made sense. And now days since I have two granddaughters coming up, why not allow girls to try-out for high school or college football? I mean, after all, they are individuals with their own minds and what if, and I mean emphatically, “oh, man, what if these two delicate flowers of future girlhood actually “want” to be on their high school or college football team?”

What, besides a narrow-minded male coach with a “good ol’ boy” buddy in the front office, can stop these girls? Or any girls from including football as part of their lives?

I may sound like an editorialist, but it’s high time that we as a race of people, men, women, school officials and politicians, just simply open our eyes, shut our mouths and let girls, if they want, be football players.

I can now not only imagine, but feel deep down in my soul how Jackie Robinson and the first African-American’s felt when they wanted to be a part of the sports scene only to be met with ridicule, scorn and ignorant reasons as to why “they” were of a lesser cut of fabric than us whites.

Yes, this is rough. But it’s true.

And the same is applicable for any girl in America today who is talented enough and courageous enough to say, “coach, I want to try out for the football team,” with courage being the stronger of the two energies.

Now I am not “talking to empty pews,” when I say that I am fully-aware that in the not-so-distant past, girls “have” been given the space to try-out for their football teams, but always, as in the case of girl football player wannabe’s, there is almost on every occasion this mysterious reason why they didn’t make the cut.

And the coach who had the authority to accept or decline them only said to the stunned parents, “uhh, your daughter wasn’t athletic enough to make our team,” and with that being said (in nearly every case) the coach closes the book on yet another girl who actually had the brass to believe that she “is” (and in all probability) and was good enough to play on an all-male football team.

I think there is a natural bond between minorities and females when it comes to taking part in an area that is, let’s face it, “dominated,” by men.

This “discrimination beast,” wasn’t just born yesterday. No, it had it’s birth way back before Jesus was on earth.

Someone, somewhere of a religious mind, probably a male member of some religious order, wanted to keep his “boy’s club” a “boy’s club” forever, thus, it was taboo to even mention by lip that a woman was able to teach The Word of God much less deliver a sermon of grace to draw a wayward soul closer to God.

As in daily life, women had their place even in the early churches. Why, no, how did we as a so-called “enlightened,” “civilized” people go so far off the track in how we treat females? Would someone please soothe this burning question for me?

Oh, I get it. It was legal to openly-degrade a woman simply because Eve partook of the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden and folks, it was not an apple, but that story is for another time.

Yeah, male buddies. We can run amuck over women and make God smile in the process. What? Sorry, I haven’t found that in any translation of the Holy Scriptures.

All I found was a mention of Jesus’ disciples being amazed at Him talking to the Samaritan woman at the well because in Jesus’ day, Jewish people were not to speak to the lowly-Samaritans.

I guess Jesus broke an unspoken-but-ironclad rule by ministering to this woman, who by the way, He helped to create.

Okay. I’ve strayed a few steps from my original subject, but with the idea of females being not as much allowed, but accepted into football, please allow me to briefly elaborate on the simplicity of my subject.

Aside from the cosmetic and chemical differences in males and females, what is really the reason or reasons why girls aren’t accepted into the sport of football?

Most girls are more-athletically-built than the guys, but it’s always the guys who get a “free pass” when a girl is trying-out for the team.

You know that I am right.

Oh, Kenneth, you say. Girls cannot take the physical abuse of playing in an all-male sport. Why not?

I’ve seen in my time, girls fighting other girls with such veracity that it made the “he-men” around them cower in shame. And they can’t take a hit. Some reason to keep them only as cheerleaders or dainty majorettes. Oh, and yes, the girls can always be a member of the flag corps. That’s fine and dandy.

You still haven’t answered my question as to why most girls fail when they “go out” for football?
Are the male athletes that insecure? Or might be they could be a little bit jealous of the girl’s athleticism. Any way you slice it, it’s always the girls who walk away disappointed, not the boys.

And to be honest, I am not so liberal with my "pro-females in football" stance that I would really want females to share the same locker room as the male players because to me, decency and respect will always have their place whether it be in sports or in real-life.

And let’s pretend for a moment that a girl “does” manage to impress a male coach and she actually makes the team. Well, she has certainly “crossed some kind of a line” by securing her athletic talents.

The girls won’t like her for she is not dainty enough and the boys won’t like her for she is a bit better than they are on the field.

A true case of “a girl without a country.”

Case in point. Consider Mo Isom, a pretty girl who had the ability to play football at LSU, which by the way, is coached by Les Miles and his all-male coaching staff.

Isom, according to major press outlets, “gave it her all,” and although she was only wanting to be a place kicker, uh, oh!  God forbid. She mysteriously failed. And folks, I am not the least bit surprised.

One day, if I live long enough, I want to “not” be surprised as a usual occurrence at hearing of a talented girl who tried hard to make it on the football team and only met with disappointment.

God, please grant me the added days to my life where I will not only see my two granddaughters, but your granddaughters not only make the football team, but run the team as the team’s quarterback.

That would be the “crowning achievement” for girls everywhere.

One more thing I neglected to mention.

Why not let girls coach high school and college football teams? Society allowed Pat Summit, the great female basketball coach from Tennessee coach until she retired.

Football, are you listening?