Women Aren't Human

 USAHockey.com's drop-down menu on their website:

I can't believe this is seriously like this.

Simone de Beauvoir wrote a book called The Second Sex in 1949. I've only read the introduction which, honestly, is a travesty because it blew my mind. Her main point (at least in the intro) is that society gives women meaning only through their relationships to men. Men are The One, neutral, the default human being. Women are The Other, the marked gender. Basically, we can't talk about women without mentioning they are women.

De Beauvoir continues to resound with me because it remains insanely applicable all over the place, particularly in sports. WNBA vs. NBA. The men's tennis tour is called the ATP=Association of Tennis Professionals, while the women's tour is the WTA=Women's Tennis Association. And the above gem from USA Hockey. Women are women hockey players, men are simply adult hockey players. The One, the Other.

There's also some beautiful ableism at work with excluding "Disabled" players from being adults. And women from being disabled. Intersectionality (more than one identity) exists, people.

Thanks guys. And some other time, I'll get into lumping women and girls together. And the fact that we need these categories at all. So much more to analyze, so little time...

context. interesting that the main article was about women's hockey on this day