Smiling through the ignorance and bigotry

NEWCASTLE (Paul Nilsen's Women's Basketball Worldwide) - Remember to write it on my gravestone please - ‘Women’s basketball is the most important thing in life after family, friends and good health’.
 
For even when I have rid myself of this mortal coil, I still want to remind everyone that there are people out there for whom women’s basketball is their passion in life.
 
I just wish I could find space for a few more words to keep spreading the additional message that women’s basketball is deserving of some wider respect out there.
 
It was International Women’s Day recently and it gave me cause to stop and reflect on exactly where women’s basketball is right now. Not necessarily in terms of development within the sport itself but it’s actual standing within the wider sporting landscape and even society itself.
 
I always knew that women’s basketball was swimming against the tide in trying to change the way it is perceived by many people but it was only when I jumped in with both feet and became completely immersed in the women’s game that I truly began to realise the extent of ignorance and bigotry which (sadly) exists out there.
 
Whilst celebrating International Women’s Day is important since it is about more serious issues than sport, it also shows that it is disappointing this celebration is needed at all.
 
From my own experience having covered women’s basketball for a while now, I am still struck by the breathtaking levels of ignorance and bigotry out there. At times, it can be difficult to deal but very quickly, I have learned that you just have to rise above your gut instinct to react by screaming loudly and banging your head repeatedly against the nearest wall in frustration.
 
Faced with ignorance and intolerance, it’s all too easy to push back far too hard in such circumstances, to fight fire with fire and to get too defensive by adopting something of a siege mentality – even if it is a wholly understandable and natural reaction when something you love so much is attacked and is continually the subject of another tasteless joke.
 
I remain convinced the best response is to try to remain balanced and realistic - even when dealing with the provocative, negative or ignorant comments which get thrown scattershot in the general direction of the women’s game.
 
This is made a little easier by me accepting that a) not everyone is going to like women’s basketball, b) women’s basketball is by no means perfect and c) the women’s basketball family doesn’t help itself at times (another column for another day perhaps).
 
There’s obviously a wide spectrum of people who say negative things about women’s basketball for all kinds of reasons.
 
For the most part, I have absolutely no problem whatsoever with those who have watched women’s basketball (even from a distance) and just don’t like it. Granted, I may disagree with their point of view but that is simply a matter of their personal preference.
 
When this occurs, I actually find myself eager to engage in further debate because I think women’s basketball can and most certainly should learn from people who have tried it but it wasn’t to their particular taste. After all, these people invested time and effort to watch and so they were curious / interested in the first place.
 
In addition to learning from what they didn’t like, there’s always a chance they might be willing to give women’s basketball a second chance – especially if some of the things they didn’t enjoy could be remedied.  Some things of course won’t be remedied.  For example, I accept women’s basketball isn’t for someone who thrives on watching spectacular dunks.
 
In stark contrast, there are a worryingly large number of bigots out there who you sense are still blinking from the sunshine after poking out their heads from their respective caves. Even trying to engage in reasonable conversation with those who are unashamedly sexist or homophobic for example and dismiss not only women’s basketball but women’s sport generally seems to be a waste of time.
 
These bigots seem to think of basketball as being a secondary issue and the only things they are interested in the gender of the players, the sexuality of players, the style of the uniforms and all of the things which quite frankly, I couldn’t care less about.
 
Having said that, I hate myself a little for actually mildly understanding their ability to have such strong views, perhaps because I always knew women’s basketball would be considered as a ‘soft target’ for such pathetic bilge.
 
What has surprised me most of all however has been the eye-popping number of people who have shown their downright ignorance – and not necessarily out of spite.
 
I am continually left with my mighty jaw almost hitting the floor in disbelief when someone or a group of people make judgements about women’s basketball having barely watched it, or in most cases, having never watched it at all.
 
I find myself trying to give them the benefit of the doubt, hoping their comments were well intentioned even if ill judged. One thing is absolutely for sure, I don’t think I will ever be surprised by any question or comment in these instances.
 
I get them regularly. From friends, strangers and even from people who incomprehensibly know about basketball but exclusively men’s basketball. I have had ludicrous comments including: ‘so do women have separate rules like netball?’, ‘how do they even manage to make the hoop when they shoot?’, ‘can they manage to play for 40 minutes?’, ‘I guess there aren’t professional women players?’, ‘has anyone ever blocked a shot in women’s basketball?’ ‘Do people really pay them actual money to play?’
 
The difference between the above and ‘I don’t think there is enough athleticism above the hoop’, ‘it’s not quick enough for me,’ or, ‘there are too many missed lay-ups’ is vast. I can accept these last three comments even if the last one in particular I don’t agree with and is surely the basketball version of an urban myth (I watch men’s basketball and believe me, they miss plenty of lay-ups!).
 
What probably pains me most of all is when women’s basketball is criticised or ridiculed by a minority of media colleagues or sometimes even by those working within the sport itself. People who should certainly know better and should have more respect.
 
Without hopefully turning myself into some annoying kind of ‘women’s basketball rights’ campaigner, I don’t think that asking for people to respect skilled athletes who excel in their chosen profession is too much to ask. The players really don’t deserve the sniggering and the distasteful comments I occasionally overhear.
 
Yet in spite of a regular barrage of misinformation, ignorance and intolerance, I still absolutely love being part of the women’s basketball family. It makes me more proud and determined to ensure further recognition for women players is forthcoming and that we continue to market, promote and most importantly, celebrate women’s basketball around the globe.
 
For as much as ignorance and bigotry can hurt and be frustrating, there are plenty of times when out of such situations, a smile will inevitably arise.
 
When someone asks me questions about the women’s game or is perhaps fascinated by my own obsession with it, I’m fortunate enough to be given a short window of opportunity to explain - and it’s always one I try to grasp with two hands.
 
Not to necessarily give women’s basketball the hard sell, but to simply speak with energy, positivity, conviction and unwavering passion about the game I love and the people within it whom I admire so much.
 
While ignorance and bigotry remains rife and may never be eliminated completely, we should never lose sight of the positives.
 
In particular, the role we all play both individually and collectively in ensuring we continue to smile together knowing we are lucky to have discovered this game and we aren’t the ones missing out!
 
Paul Nilsen

FIBA

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