Sports & Politics Intersect 2017 in review: #MeToo reaches the highest levels in sports

Nassar’s story has been huge in the last month as more than 140 women have come out and accused Nassar of sexual abuse, many of whom were prominent and Olympic athletes who participated for USA Olympics and the Michigan State gymnastics team. Nassar was an athletic trainer for both organizations and used his job to prey on defenseless young women. What made Nassar’s story so hard to stomach is the number of times since the mid-1990s that his unethical medical practices were brought to attention by women to either USA Gymnastics or Michigan State, and how both organizations essentially enabled his behavior by keeping him employed. 

Despite the NDA, Maroney has been one of the biggest names to come out against Nassar and shared some terrifying details about her story. 

“For me, the scariest night of my life happened when I was 15 years old. I had flown all day and night with the team to get to Tokyo. He’d given me a sleeping pill for the flight, and the next thing I know, I was all alone with him in his hotel room getting a ‘treatment.’ I thought I was going to die that night.” 

These stories haven’t been limited to one sport, one league or one individual. They’re popping up in every industry – even those that report on these very stories. In July, Fox Sports was forced to fire Jamie Horowitz amid sexual abuse allegations. Horowitz, who essentially turned Fox’s sports programming around after poaching a few television personalities from ESPN, was let go following the terminations of Bill O'Reilly and Roger Ailes from 21st Century Fox.

ESPN is dealing with what can only be described as a culture of sexism and sexual misconduct. The Boston Globe ran an investigative report that detailed how women cut their maternity leave short and were forced to endure advances from men at the company out of fear that they might lose their jobs or have their roles significantly reduced. 

Former ESPN anchor Sara Walsh was so terrified of losing her job that, “she decided not to call in sick when she started bleeding from a miscarriage during a work trip to Alabama. Instead, she went to the studio and anchored the show.”

Adrienne Lawrence, who received inappropriate text messages from ESPN veteran John Buccigross, which included shirtless photos, filed a complaint against ESPN earlier in the year and said, “ESPN has failed to address its deeply ingrained culture of sexism and hostile treatment of women.” This sentiment has been echoed by Walsh, and a number of other women who have lost their jobs for either speaking up about how they’ve been treated or become pregnant. 

While these kids of stories have existed, the biggest change in the frequency of these stories being told is the strength in numbers. The Bill Cosby and Weinstein stories are great case studies for how having allies can help these women tell their stories. The volume is leading to a sense of credibility, which only means more of these stories are coming, according to Michael Kimmel, founder of the Center for The Study of Men and Masculinities at Stony Brook University.

“One big difference in 2017 is that women are being believed. Women are not on trial. Their credibility is not the issue. Men’s behavior is the issue. That is the biggest change right now.”

The NFL Network also came under fire this year when former stylist Jami Cantor filed a complaint against Marshall Faulk, Heath Evans, Ike Taylor, Eric Weinberger, Donovan McNabb and Eric Davis (the last two are currently with ESPN).

According to the New York Times, the complaint has details about Faulk asking personal questions about her sex life, fondling her, exposing his genitals while demanding oral sex and much more from the other five listed. 

According to Louise Fitzgerald, an emeritus professor of gender and women’s studies at the University of Illinois and an expert on sexual harassment, “the more men relative to female employees, the more harassment there tends to be. Sports is one of the most masculinized industries in the country.”

While these stories are appalling and difficult to stomach, they are happening. But these discussions are necessary to change a deep and ingrained culture that allows for women to be treated this way. If there is a silver lining to all of this is that fewer women will feel alone, and those men who are predators will eventually be outed. Some of the most powerful men in their respective industries have come under scrutiny in 2017, and a lot of it has to do with the barriers that protect these men being knocked down by the brave women willing to sacrifice their own personal well being to ensure that what happened to her doesn’t happen to the next woman. 

“There’s a wall of protection thrown up around players,” says Kimmel. “When bad things happen, all kinds of people are covering for them. But these walls will soon come down.” 

- Phillip Barnett

Of note: 

From the hundreds of stories we’ve listed for ‘Of Note’ over we’ve highlighted over 2017, a handful will have far-reaching implications in 2018 because they involve lengthy battles over the financial stakes of local and state governments, and in some cases, the treatment of marginalized groups. We're tracking for the New Year: 

• The Los Angeles Rams have had a resurgence in the second season since their return to Southern California, shocking the league with its first division crown in 14 years. Yet, they are still embroiled in a legal battle with their previous home city. On December 1, the Rams filed a motion to dismiss a lawsuit from the city of St. Louis, which is suing the team, the NFL and the other member clubs for breach of contract over the January 2016 move. However, just after Christmas, St. Louis County Circuit Judge Christopher McGraugh denied the Rams’ motion, which will force owner Stan Kroenke to defend the franchise against charges of fraud. (The NFL and the remaining teams were dismissed from the suit.)  The Rams/St. Louis case could set the tone for the next step in the Raiders’ impending move to Las Vegas, as the city of Oakland will be ditched for a second time by the Silver and Black.
  

• Speaking of Sin City, 2017 was the first year where Las Vegas was fully woven into the major professional team sports circuit in the inaugural - and shockingly good - season of the Vegas Golden Knights, whose 52 points currently lead the Western Conference. Las Vegas represents the future of North American pro sports in dual respects. One, the Golden Knights will not only be joined by the Raiders (which groundbreaking of its new stadium having taken place), but the WNBA’s former San Antonio Stars have relocated to the city, rebranded as the Las Vegas Aces. The Aces are seen as both an entertainment vehicle and proving ground for a possible NBA franchise. Two, the NHL still has yet to request for Golden Knights games to be removed from Nevada sports books. Alongside the Supreme Court hearing arguments about legalized gambling in New Jersey, an openness towards betting from NBA commissioner Adam Silver, and the country’s softening attitudes on the practice, Las Vegas’ position as America’s bettors’ paradise could greatly be affected in the coming years.  

• During the Cleveland Indians’ pennant run in 2016, pressure had begun to re-build over the team’s name and its controversial logo Chief Wahoo, both which are seen as racially insensitive towards Native Americans. MLB commissioner Rob Manfred and team owner Paul Dolan had discussions during the 2017 season, though in August, Dolan said that while neither side “met eye to eye,” a resolution was near. No decision has been made from either the franchise or the league. Progress was also been stalled in a similar case over the summer with the Washington Redskins where the Supreme Court ruled that federal trademark registrations can be granted, even if the case deals with an offensive mark. It effectively nullified the Patent and Trademark Office’s 2014 decision to cancel the ‘Redskins’ trademark. (There was a bit of retribution in mid-December from an elaborately-crafted social media hoax where the football team’s name was changed to ‘Redhawks.’)

• In 2016, the passage of House Bill 2 (HB2) caused great harm to the financial state and public image of North Carolina, as the measure had eliminated anti-discrimination protections for LGBT citizens, including a widely-publicized section requiring transgendered persons use restrooms that correspond to the sex of their birth, not their chosen gender identities. Several sporting organizations chose to withdraw major events from the state until the ‘bathroom bill’ was repealed, most notably Charlotte losing the 2017 NBA All-Star Game. In March 2017, state officials signed a partial repeal of HB2 that seemingly suited concerned businesses such as the NBA and NCAA, but angered many in the affected community. Not long afterwards and seemingly out of fear of repeating North Carolina’s mistakes, several sports figures, teams and organizations in Texas monitored and spoke out against the state legislature’s consideration of its own bathroom bill. The Texas bill, SB3, failed, which may have cleared the way for the Dallas metroplex to host both the NFL and NHL drafts in 2018.

• For all the rightful outrage about bribery among international sporting bodies, there’s a real human rights story that remains unresolved in the sports world. Back in August, The Guardian published its findings of an investigation into African runners being routinely mistreated and denied compensation for their efforts while competing for other countries, with one athlete stating that she and fellow runners “are treated like sporting slaves.” The second part of its investigation revealed the ease of purchasing performance enhancers in Ethiopia and organizational turmoil at its anti-doping agency. In the advent of Russia’s suspension from the upcoming Winter Olympics due to its wide-ranging doping program, scrutiny around the globe may grow as we draw two years out from the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Yet, we may continue to learn about aspiring athletes who perform in such dangerous conditions for a chance to survive, let alone win.

- Jason Clinkscales