Anyone who has read GameFace, spent any time on gogameface.com, or listened to the GameOn Podcast knows how I feel about pink jerseys.
Don’t get me wrong, there’s certainly a place for pink: Breast Cancer awareness … the singer Pink … the Pink Ladies from Grease … a refreshing glass of pink lemonade …
But I have a problem with pink jerseys because I consider myself a serious sports fan and I want to be taken seriously. Pink jerseys make it seem like we female fans don’t know our stuff. Like we’re not real fans. And we are. And there are lots of us. Lots of us who know that real fans don’t wear pink ... jerseys.
So every day, I feel like picketing the sports league offices. Letting them know that they really should know that there are lots of us out here who know that there are six points in a touchdown … and the definition of an RBI … we know what a full-court press is … and the meaning of hat trick. And there are lots of us out here who bleed black and gold … and orange and blue … and blue and silver … and red and gold … and everything but pink. And on my picket signs, I would include the following info (with much catchier, sound-bytey phrases, of course):
>> More than 45 million women tune into the NFL every weekend.*
>> An estimated 46% of the NBA's fan base is women and the NBA sold 0 million in merchandise for women in 2005 (that was three years ago!)*
>> 46% of all MLB-licensed apparel is purchased by women, according to the MLB.*
>> Current estimates put the number of American women who follow at least one professional sport somewhere between 50 and 70 million.**
And maybe my stump speech would go something like this:
We, the female sports fans of these United States of America, love the thrill of victory, the agony of defeat ... and the drama on the field and off, week after week, month after month, year after year. We love (almost) everything about American sports. We just, for the love of God, don't necessarily like pink … We don’t need everything to be bedazzled … And we don't want to wear oversize men's jerseys.
So dear commissioners of the NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL and anyone else who is listening, please give us more choices and let us show our TRUE COLORS. Let us wear our hearts — and the love of our favorite team — on our sleeves … sleeves that are not pink.
Boy, do I feel better after getting all of this Pink Jersey-bashing off of my chest.
That said, for the entire month of October, I hereby solemnly swear to leave Pink alone. I will not bash it. I will not cringe when I see it. I will not shrink back in terror when I see a bunch of Pink-wearing female fans whooping it up at a tailgate or in the stands.
I have decided to do this because for this month, Pink means Breast Cancer Awareness. My dear friend Camilla battled Breast Cancer two years ago. She was just 27 when she was diagnosed and while I was writing GameFace, I was her chemo buddy. She had a double-mastectomy and went through eight weeks of chemo — and it was one of the most inspiring, amazing experiences of my life to be able to share this with her, and watch her triumph over this devastating disease. Her mother, who died of cancer when Camilla was 15, wasn't so lucky.
So for Camilla and her mom and for all women who have been affected by Breast Cancer — I am surrendering the Pink Jersey-bashing in your honor!
I hope you'll join me in honoring these brave women by donating to the Susan G. Komen foundation (and surrendering the Pink bashing with me!)
ALSO: For every download of our GameOn podcast for the month of October, GoGameFace.com will donate to the Susan G. Komen Foundation.
So Spread the Word. Praise the Podcast. Surrender the Pink!
SOURCES:
* Yankelovich, 2008
** Scarborough Sports Marketing, 2002
