Cheerleaders Expose the Grim Reality of the Industry with Sexual Harassment

Cheerleaders are taught and ordered to accept sexual harassment as a part of their job and to not upset the audience, infiltrating the silence surrounding sexual misconduct in tailgate parties and suites.

Cheerleaders for a professional sports team, while having the opportunity to showcase their dancing skills under the spotlight, are also likely to fall victims to sexual harassment and groping from fans at games and other sports-related events.

Many current and former cheerleaders from the N.F.L, the N.B.A. and the N.H.L, in an interview conducted recently, have described their experiences as cheerleaders as an exploitation of their agencies and teams by sending them to pregame tailgating and exposing them to often unwanted attention, physical touches and harassments.

Labriah Lee Holt, a former cheerleader for the Tennessee Titans in the N.F.L., said: “When you have on a push-up bra and a fringed skirt, it can sometimes, unfortunately, feel like it comes with the territory.” She also attributed to the frequency of these inappropriate sexual misconducts and behaviors to the fact that the people they interact with are often drunken sports fans who are heated in the moment.

These incidents of sexual harassment are often made aware to the officials in charge of the team. However, they did very little to prevent further incidents from happening, and in fact, they continue to send cheerleaders into pregame tailgating where the women were forced to face “disgusting old men who have been drinking and will say something inappropriate.” This has been a common norm in the industry that has gone unacknowledged in years.

The teams mentioned by the cheerleaders who came forward have not yet responded officially with a comment and the N.F.L has directly declined to speak about this subject. In fact, a spokesperson has stated that “the N.F.L. and all N.F.L. member clubs support fair employment practices. Employees and associates of the N.F.L. have the right to work in a positive and respectful environment that is free form any and all forms of harassment.”

In response to these alleged sexual harassments, teams have included harassment treatments in training handbooks that cheerleaders and other dance team members read. However, this action seems superficial, as the agency has continued sending them to tailgate parties or the stands, where they are at most risk of these incidents. Also, the cheerleaders were told to never upset the fans.

According to a former Cowboys cheerleader, they were taught that “if someone’s getting hands on you, how to navigate that.” They were told to say, “‘That’s not very nice’, to be sweet, not rude. Say, ‘Can I ask you to step over here?’ Use body language to help deter the situation. Never be mean. Never. Always courteous. Because if it’s not for the fans, we wouldn’t be here – that’s how we were supposed to think of this.”

Many cheerleaders have expressed anger and discontent towards the way they were mandated to act in regard to sexual harassments from the audiences. It is an unspoken rule that if one were to voice their oppositions, they would be immediately dismissed and taken off the team without negotiation. This crude reality leaves the cheerleaders with no option but to keep thrusting their bodies out into the tailgate parties and suites with drunken men and risk their safety.

Lawyers and other experts have expressed hopes for potential legal ramifications that could prevent further incidents from happening. This, however, would be a rough task, as it would involve breaking down an industry that operates upon the silent agreement that these women are meant to please the audience.

Featured Image via Wikimedia