Presently the whole world is discussing the situation of a female athlete, Caster Semenya, an 18 year old South African who ran the 800m this summer.
The issue is that she apparently looks like a man. She was therefore forced to submit to gender verification tests to prove that she was in fact the gender she claimed she was.
Of course, this in itself is humiliating enough for someone to endure when all they desire is to succeed in an event they love. But the International Associations of Athletics Federations (IAAF) didn't feel that this was sufficient. They felt that it was necessary for the world to know that such suspicions were felt and that tests were carried out.
Meanwhile, this poor...I shall have to say person, I suppose...has had to go through all this, and has done so gracefully. For this alone she deserves a medal.
This situation is utterly ridiculous. Here we are in the 21st century - the era of 'human rights' - and we feel it is justified to poke fun globally at a talented athlete simply because she doesn't fit our desired appearance. She looks slightly masculine, so she must be a man. My cat growls like a dog from time to time, so, by this ingenious logic, she is, of course, a dog.
I am disgusted that people feel it is justifiable to make such accusations and to publicise to all and sundry with absolutely no regard for Semenya's feelings. Competitors have outrightly claimed "She's a man". Do we not care about being sensitive to people any more?
Evidently as a society we are more interested in a cheap laugh than in allowing someone their dignity. Speculation and suspicion mean more to us than respect. And we are perfectly content to trample on someone's emotions because there might be an interesting 'scandal' story for us parasites of the human race to feed on.
I am personally fairly confident that she's just an unfortunate woman. And not unfortunate because of how she looks, but because her fellow human beings consider it an issue.
Clearly the phrase 'don't judge a book by its cover' means nothing to the IAAF. Or to the rest of us, for that matter.
The issue is that she apparently looks like a man. She was therefore forced to submit to gender verification tests to prove that she was in fact the gender she claimed she was.
Of course, this in itself is humiliating enough for someone to endure when all they desire is to succeed in an event they love. But the International Associations of Athletics Federations (IAAF) didn't feel that this was sufficient. They felt that it was necessary for the world to know that such suspicions were felt and that tests were carried out.
Meanwhile, this poor...I shall have to say person, I suppose...has had to go through all this, and has done so gracefully. For this alone she deserves a medal.
This situation is utterly ridiculous. Here we are in the 21st century - the era of 'human rights' - and we feel it is justified to poke fun globally at a talented athlete simply because she doesn't fit our desired appearance. She looks slightly masculine, so she must be a man. My cat growls like a dog from time to time, so, by this ingenious logic, she is, of course, a dog.
I am disgusted that people feel it is justifiable to make such accusations and to publicise to all and sundry with absolutely no regard for Semenya's feelings. Competitors have outrightly claimed "She's a man". Do we not care about being sensitive to people any more?
Evidently as a society we are more interested in a cheap laugh than in allowing someone their dignity. Speculation and suspicion mean more to us than respect. And we are perfectly content to trample on someone's emotions because there might be an interesting 'scandal' story for us parasites of the human race to feed on.
I am personally fairly confident that she's just an unfortunate woman. And not unfortunate because of how she looks, but because her fellow human beings consider it an issue.
Clearly the phrase 'don't judge a book by its cover' means nothing to the IAAF. Or to the rest of us, for that matter.
2 comments:
I wholeheartedly agree with you Andrew, if she had broken the record by 1 whole lap then she would have been tested for drug abuse. To have to be tested for gender is disgraceful, when did look help you run! Do you have to have long following hair, surgically enhanced breasts or look like you just stepped off the catwalk? I can't believe this I.A.A.F would stoop so low and force a woman to do this, I hope they apologise profusely but I also hope that the woman in question hasn't been put off running.
Absolutely. Thank you so much for commenting, Sarah!
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