A Sexist Hiss for Semenya
Usain Bolt improved his personal record in Berlin and became an international sensation. Days later, Mokgadi Caster Semenya improved her time and the International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF) descended a slew of clinicians on her to certify her femaleness.
Please note that I resist to use the word gender here as we are 100% sure that Semenya has lived her life as a girl. Gender is a result of one’s biological bits and social expectations.
The issue here is not whether Semenya is or isn’t a woman. At the heart of Semenya’s ordeal is the world of feminine societal expectations turned topsy-turvy. She plays soccer with the boys. She is too fast to be a woman. She is too muscular to be a woman. She is too *insert your choice of superior/ more desirable trait here* to be a woman. She MUST be a man!
As if rumors and tests from these rumors were not drama enough, IAAF’s conveniently leaky machinery publicized the results. The only thing more disgusting than the rumors is the gratuitous glee accompanying Semenya’s intersex discussion.
What yardstick are we using to measure femaleness? Beyonce’s ample bottom or the Geico™ Caveman’s wife uncultured ways? The General lack of an adam’s apple or the marked absence of the twig and berries?
Humans are stubborn things. They refuse to fit into nice orderly boxes labeled as either male or female. Some women have beards and or peach fuzz. Some men, like my uncle, do not grow a beard. Caster Semenya is the human face behind the American Psychological Association’s impersonal statistical declaration that 1 in 1,500 kids is born with indistinguishable genitals.
Here is a random thought. If Semenya was in a cooking, cleaning or baby making competition and improved her own personal record time, would these clinicians be lining up to poke and prod her?
A second thought and perhaps a more fearful one is what happens to this rising star now? Given her biological ‘undue advantage’ Semenya may not be allowed to compete against women. As far as I can tell, there are no special Olympics for intersexed individuals. All I see is more meat for the media buzzards.
While the media the rest of them cast aspersions on Caster’s naughty bits, I will start the infamous feminist hiss reserved for sexist remarks at poetry slams.
So, please join me.
Let’s take it away at the count of three.
ONE….
TWO…
THREE..
SSS…SSSS….SSSSS…..SSS…SSSS….SSSSS…..
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This story has continued to annoy to no end. Esp the glee! Jeez.
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I can’t help but notice the logical flaws in this argument. Have to rush now but will be back to further comment.
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Thanks for the piece and you are dead on about the double standards. The attack on Semenya has made me so angry. I read somewhere that she has been put on a suicide watch
Guess what her crime was. Freaking winning
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The IAAF and Makgodi’s competitors valid issue with Mokgadi ias been distorted beyond the point.
A simple test would be to ascertain what percentage of men would offer Makgodi equal status with their sexy wives in their harems!
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@MUK
Allegations arose before the race based on her physical appearance. I understand that she is performing on an international stage and therefore has less privacy. The IAAF failed her horribly is all I’m saying.
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Societal Expectations: Semenya has not helped her situation. At the end of her sprint, she does two things that are out of the character of a female sprintster: flex her biceps like a weightlifter and brush “dirt” off her shoulder. Whatever she expects to acheive by that is counter. My suggestions to her: Grow some long hair, wear some small bra atleast (even if …) and just be feminine. Stop being yourself (I know someone will jump on me on that), but, hey, wait a minute. There are things you cannot do as a parent before kids, weeds you cannot smoke if you are an olympic swimmer etc. Just being yourself is not an option in most places, least of them in an international meet. Genitalia, voice, speed are not really the issues here.
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Definitely we (Humans) have a long way to go in terms of these gender and/or sexuality. We do agree that majority are in the somewhat rigid context of Male and Female ‘boxes’ but we need to agree that there exists a minority. A small part of me (the somewhat Christian part) thinks its got alot to do with the fall of Adam (Bible). But that is a separate argument. All we need to do is know that we are all unique; we may never understand why and we may wish that it would be very easy to understand and/or accept. I also wish that but then again..IT AINT HAPP’NIN! So now what? What is it that makes us human? Me believes that in order to at the very least try to live in this CRAZY world, we need to accept that fact that humanity is diverse. The only common denominator is that WE ARE HUMANS, PERIOD! Lets try that. And give LOVE!!
@kiprono, Societal Expectations are some of the causes of misery to most people. Ati you should be this or do that. Let people be. Simple.
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