I don’t know how many of you are familiar with the story of Caster Semenya, the 18 year-old South African runner who, last week was made to undergo “gender testing” amid suspicion that she is not a biological female and therefore, not qualified to run the women’s 800-meter. After winning the race, International Association of Athletics Federations World (IAAF) officials called Semenya’s sex into question due to “her physique an powerful style” that had “sparked speculation in recent months that she may not be entirely female.”
First of all, “gender test”? This term popped out at me simply because I do not understand why the words “gender” and “sex” are still used interchangeably in the English language. Merriam-Webster defines gender as “the behavioral, cultural, or psychological traits typically associated with one’s sex.” With that said, I ask, how can you test those!? I’ll be damned if someone calls my learned behaviors into question. On the other hand, “sex” is defined as “either of the two major forms of individuals that occur in many species and that are distinguished respectively as male or female especially on the basis of their reproductive organs and structures.” Even testing sex is, I think, intrusive and should be made illegal. I digress…
Aside from the obvious sexism and absurd assumptions of sex dichotomy (see “Caster Semenya: The Idiocy of Sex Testing”) weaving throughout this story as well as the fact that it brings up the discrimination that intersex and gender variant people face daily, is the racism underlying it all. Did Semenya look more like a female when she registered to run than when she won? Have Black women’s bodies not undergone enough scrutiny for having different bone, body, and muscular structures? My mind raced to Saartjie Baartman of South Africa, whose body was put on display in 19th century Europe. Baartman was better known as the “Hottentot Venus” whose buttocks and labia were a sideshow attraction for European spectators.
This is one of the first examples I can think of of what is called “scientific racism,” where the physical characteristics of people are attributed to other, arbitrary characteristics. Starting with ideas that larger skulls are indications of better capacity for intelligence and not ending with the idea that larger average penis sizes are more indicative of sexual prowess and likeliness to rape (think: the African-American male). Notions like these made by so-called powerful white scientists of the day are what fuel racial profiling today.
Even if it is found that Caster Semenya does have a Y chromosome, the fact still remains that she was targeted for investigation because of her physical features. The question is, why can’t physically strong and athletic Black women simply perform well?
The answer: Because racism and capitalism prevail to destroy the Black female. A conversation for another time!
“A hater can’t stand a motherfuckin’ winner…”-Katt Williams
3 comments:
THANK YOU SIS! Just thank you so much. I just learned of this, while celebrating my grandmother's bithday... The family are huge sport fanatics with many atheletes strung along the blood line. So as the evening slowed, the track and field games were tuned into and then this discussion came about. After getting the details about such hurtful details around young Semenya, I got caught up in a very heated debate with my family on the rights/wrongs/humor/history/connectedness and such of the matter and I found myself on an opposing side of the popular tone and understanding of such events. And let me tell you how much it hurt and angers me to see and hear and feel women and men, whom I call family, siding with the cruelty and invasion that is planned to be conducted on this young woman. Its absurd and painful to think that this woman will have to endure the picking and proding of multiple individuals to declare the status/labeling/namimg of her being. HER BEING! And I don't know or understand why that doesn't chill and shake up all folks/peoples who are aware of the history/narrative/ and present day victimization of Black and Brown women's bodies and identities. So Thank You for letting me know that I'm not crazy...although I know I'm not. Thanks!
Hahahaha....no, no, no, you are not alone! Believe it or not, I think that most people thing there is nothing wrong with this kind of testing until they are subjected to it. Most people want us all to fit in and go along and when we don't, it's like we lose our rights automatically. It's sad...
snappin' my fingers. also love the katt williams quote at the end!
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