Ready?! Okay!
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| Common stereotype: Always happy. The "derp" face. (Viralnova). |
When you think of cheerleaders, many different things may
come to mind. Whether it be, “Cheerleaders are so dumb, and all they want is
attention” or “Cheerleading seems like a really difficult sport, I am always
impressed by the athleticism they demonstrate” to every else in between. Cheerleaders
have been stereotyped for many years, both positively and negatively. Being a
cheerleader, I have grown up hearing and experiencing the effects of these
stereotypes on myself and my teammates. I believe that it is important for
everyone to understand the history and what actually goes in to being a successful
cheer squad.
History of cheer
Cheerleading teams
began as early as the 1880’s, the first being an all-male pep club (Varsity). The teams were generally four to six
members large, and only men. The men would sit in the crowds during football or
basketball games, and begin small chants among themselves, which would
eventually spread out through the rest of the crowd (Time, Z).
In fact, female cheerleading didn’t begin until much later.
The first didn’t join the cheerleading scene until the 1920’s, and only because
there were no other sports offered to women at that time (LoveToKnow). As time
progressed on, males still had dominance over the sport. Lawrence Herkimer
created the first jump, the “Herkie”; the National Football League (NFL)
business men saw a marketing opportunity for entertainment, and ESPN broadcasters
aired the first cheerleading competition for all to see (Soard, L).
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| Credit for the first cheer is given to the first all-male cheerleading team and Johnny Campbell, with the cheer "Rah, rah, rah! Minn-e-so-ta!" (Time, Z). |
Modern cheerleading
is a much different sport than it was back in the 1920’s. Due to the short and
revealing uniforms on girls, the cheerleading scene now being 90% females, and how
media portrays the average cheerleader, many different stereotypes have arose
and judgements are made every day. I have seen stereotypes affect my teammates,
and myself.
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| Me with high school friend, beginning our college careers as athletes! |
My experiences as a cheerleader
At my age of 20, I have
officially been cheering for 16 years of my life. I’ve been through it all. The
awkward stages of just learning how to move your body, making the varsity team
in high school, being the top tumbler of your squad, suffering major injuries
(but recover!), and be blessed enough to continue cheering in college. The
journey has been amazing, but also emotional. I have watched many of my
teammates come and go, I’ve lost many competitions, and I’ve dropped girls from
the air. I have made some life-long friends through cheerleading and I have
gained many skills that I wouldn’t have
gained anywhere
else. I pride myself in being a cheerleader and having most of my friends as
cheerleaders. |
| Michigan Tech Cheer at GVSU Competition, 2015 |
People often ask me, “Why cheerleading? Why not volleyball,
or softball?” The answer I give them always varies, but it is generally
something along the lines of this: I choose cheer because we are a hard-working
group of athletes. The team work that you have to demonstrate is unparalleled
to any other sport, and it’s fun. The
girls, and boys, that I am on the team with are some of the nicest people I
know.
As you may have guessed, this
response is not always well received. Most of the replies I receive begin with
an eye roll or a scoffing noise followed by some remark about how we are all
just fake and want to appear that way for the public. This truly is a misconception
of cheerleaders, as whole.
People believe this categorization due to the stereotypes
that have been given to us.
Stereotypes of
cheerleaders
Stereotype – A belief
or association that links a whole group of people with certain traits or
characteristics (Kassin).
There are a few common negative stereotypes that are
associated with cheerleaders:
- Cheerleaders are dumb and ditzy
- Male cheerleaders are gay
- Cheerleading isn’t a sport and it isn’t hard to do
- Cheerleaders are snobby and rude
- Cheerleaders are fake
- Girls/boys only do cheer to get attention or cheerleaders are “easy”
Growing up as a cheerleader, I have witnessed each of the
stereotypes listed above by either being told directly to my face, through
media, or through stories of my teammates. I become very bothered when I hear
these types of things being said because they simply aren’t true. Most of the
cheerleaders in America are actually very smart, many attending college to
obtain life-long careers. Cheerleaders are generally the voice of their
communities and often complete community service. Cheerleaders may be fake when
we are performing, but that is because it’s a performance. Like a high school
play, cheerleaders are putting on a show for their audience. A great, but
short, video documentary on how cheerleaders are negatively conceived and how
we really are can be found here.
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| "Fired Up", a movie about cheerleading and the competition, illustrates the common stereotypes of your everyday cheerleader (IMDb). |
Negative stereotypes do affect young and developed cheerleaders.
When young girls or boys start off cheering and they are told (by media or
peers) that cheerleading is for dumb girls, or gay boys, or for people who just
want attention, it can really alter how those kids grow. Furthermore, stereotypes
that are given to cheerleaders when we are older can really impact our
self-esteem in negative ways. When teenage girls are told that they are fake, “easy”
and dumb, they may start to believe it and feel really bad about themselves.
Even with many negative stereotypes of cheerleaders, there
are still many positive stereotypes that define us as well:
- Cheerleaders are really healthy and fit
- Cheerleaders are great at teamwork
- Cheerleaders are fun and caring individuals, who are very passionate about what they do
- Cheerleading looks awesome and difficult, you can tell that the teams put a lot of work into what they do.
It is great that some
of the population views cheerleaders for what they are – hardworking, leaders,
and dedicated to their sport. It is always very uplifting as a cheerleader to
hear that you are appreciated and that people really do acknowledge all of the
time and energy that you have put in. When we hear that we are noticed and that
people actually believe that we are a good group of individuals, it makes us
very happy. We feel fulfillment and joy, and feel better about ourselves. However,
sometimes even the positive stereotypes can have negative effects.
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| "Healthy and fit" may lead to a negative impact. (Cacich). |
