Local women have heard comments similar to Imus’ statements before

By Matt Bewley | The Daily Journal

Published Wednesday, April 18, 2007

Responses to last week’s derogatory comments made on MSNBC by “shock jock” Don Imus are strongly felt by local women and athletes alike.

“The Fergus Falls chapter of the National Organization of Women (NOW) deplores the comments,” NOW chapter member Maryjane Westra said. “We find his comments racist, sexist and extremely dangerous to our society. The players on the Rutgers women’s basketball team are successful college students, several of whom have 4.0 grade point averages and at least one is seeking a triple-major while playing basketball. More importantly, these women are daughters, sisters and mothers.”

Imus’ comments were also widely discussed at the Minnesota State Community and Technical College.

“He just gets on a power trip,” MSCTC instructor and women’s athletics coach Ann Williams said. “It’s like the “f” word. He wants the shock value.”

The 40-year coach of women’s basketball and volleyball has seen this sort of denigration of female athletes in the past.

“I think in the past it has happened. Back in the ‘60s, they used to say, ‘You play like a girl,’ or ‘cry a girl.’ We had some really good athletes in college my first couple years, but if you went out and ran, you wanted to kind of stay hidden,” she said. “Women jocks were a negative thing.”

She is also of the opinion that he should be ignored.

“If people are going to be stupid, what can you do?” she said. “If people are going to say things about people they don’t even know, what can you do? You have to ignore him and move on. Some people are into control and into power – that’s my opinion.”

“I think, obviously, he has issues,” MSCTC sophomore basketball forward Sam Martin said. “You know, prejudice. He’s just trying to get attention. Most of my teammates were upset by it, and thought it was disturbing. That could be any of us, and to be put in that situation, especially after Rutgers had such an amazing year.”

As an athlete and a woman, stereotyping is by no means something new to Martin.

“I have definitely gotten some of the athlete stereotypes,” she said. “You get a lot of the lesbian comments, or people think just because you’re an athlete, you’re not as smart or you get the easy way, you know, special treatment. But it’s just not true, believe me.”

Voicing opinion does have limits, when it comes to a public forum like live TV or radio.

“The FCC is very clear about on-air standards for announcers regarding obscenity, indecency, and defamation,” Lakes Radio operations manager Greg Brady said. “Announcers and station owners can be fined thousands of dollars and people can lose their jobs, not to mention the possibility of civil lawsuits.”

The fact that Don Imus lost his job is something for which Sam Martin is in favor.

“Fortunately for us,” she said, “people are saying there needs to be a line drawn.”