My Experiences in Skateboarding- Jenkem Article

[Garth Marenghi]

If a girl skates her ass off everyone will respect her. Fact. I wonder if the writer actually skates.

You are missing the point. At least you have a lot of company.

[Eds_gallerist]

If a girl skates her ass off everyone will respect her. Fact. I wonder if the writer actually skates.

In reverse,  is it ok to not be respectful if someone doesn't skate their ass off?

I liked reading the article.  "We" as men should rather be fighting for equality than being ashamed.
Over the last few years I have endured some "mild" sexual harassment (e.g. ass-grabbing) from both male and female colleagues and strangers in non-skating contexts and it felt terrible.  I can only imagine what women have to endure on a daily basis. So fuck off everyone that justifies this kind of misbehaviour!

[Mad Max]

I did notice Thrasher didn't have the make out challenge on KOTR this year...

[planman]

The number of people in this thread are entirely missing the point of this article, only proves her point further. Jesus Christ, it shouldn't be that hard to just accept the fact that there's still way more sexism in skateboarding than we'd like to admit.

[Sleazy]

and you might be missing the point the posters in here are making which should be equally deserving of being heard. i didn't read anyone saying there wasn't sexism in skateboarding. the points being made were

1) going meet a guy at a hotel room drunk isn't a skating culture problem
2) people wondering if she actually skates or is a girl who likes hanging out at the skate park

why is it every time there is a topic that is debatable on here people start acting like only one perspective matters and start playing pc police looking for violations that allow dismissing the other persons pov because they are morally inferior.

[SHIREFLIP]

http://youtu.be/11MJ0P1MXw4?t=11m13s

[Hoeboi]

and you might be missing the point the posters in here are making which should be equally deserving of being heard. i didn't read anyone saying there wasn't sexism in skateboarding. the points being made were

1) going meet a guy at a hotel room drunk isn't a skating culture problem
2) people wondering if she actually skates or is a girl who likes hanging out at the skate park

why is it every time there is a topic that is debatable on here people start acting like only one perspective matters and start playing pc police looking for violations that allow dismissing the other persons pov because they are morally inferior.

this is one of the most dire symptoms of the hoeboy virus

[butterballs for jerry]

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If a girl skates her ass off everyone will respect her. Fact. I wonder if the writer actually skates.

[close]

In reverse,  is it ok to not be respectful if someone doesn't skate their ass off?

If I don't really know the person it's whatever. But once I get to know someone I will absolutely talk shit. "Woooow another boardslide! Omigosh!" I think it pushes people to progress?

[Sleazy]

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and you might be missing the point the posters in here are making which should be equally deserving of being heard. i didn't read anyone saying there wasn't sexism in skateboarding. the points being made were

1) going meet a guy at a hotel room drunk isn't a skating culture problem
2) people wondering if she actually skates or is a girl who likes hanging out at the skate park

why is it every time there is a topic that is debatable on here people start acting like only one perspective matters and start playing pc police looking for violations that allow dismissing the other persons pov because they are morally inferior.

[close]

this is one of the most dire symptoms of the hoeboy virus

Uh that’s the exact thing I’m talking about. The name calling and pejoratives just shut down what could be enlightening conversations.

[oyolar]

and you might be missing the point the posters in here are making which should be equally deserving of being heard. i didn't read anyone saying there wasn't sexism in skateboarding. the points being made were

1) going meet a guy at a hotel room drunk isn't a skating culture problem
2) people wondering if she actually skates or is a girl who likes hanging out at the skate park

why is it every time there is a topic that is debatable on here people start acting like only one perspective matters and start playing pc police looking for violations that allow dismissing the other persons pov because they are morally inferior.

Most of the posters in here aren't making points that need to be heard actually - they're handwaving away and ignoring her experiences, which is a common occurrence for plenty of women whenever they try to bring light to their toxic experiences with men in a variety of situations and spaces.  What exactly do you think needs to be debated about her experiences with sexism and objectification by skaters and by the skateboard industry?

But to address your two points:

1.) As she's writing about this particular experience for a skate site, I feel like it's fair to assume that the guy in question at the party was a skater.  But if not, she mentions a story of getting her nipples pinched at a contest - a context that is explicitly about skating.  And she mentions lesser situations, where male skaters assume she wants to sleep with them because she's hanging out with them or is assumed to have fucked a bunch of male pros because she is a female skater.  All of these are examples of sexism and misogyny and all of them are directly tied to skaters and skating culture. 
1a.) Let's say that the guy at the hotel wasn't a skater - does it mean that skaters and skating are blameless and pure?  Or are you implying that because non-skating culture and people are messed up, it somehow gives skaters and skating a pass?
2.) This is addressed by the author in the article as to why it's offensive: "...I’ll be asked whose girlfriend I am over and over again both at the park and at events––a question at best prodding my relationship status, at worst assuming my right to be somewhere is only earned through my relationship to a man."

[nopes]

^^^^^

Great response. Would gnar

[oyolar]

Also, Sleazy, since you and other posters have claimed that this is PC culture run amok yet again, I'll (re)direct you to this comment from the article (and ignore the fact that most complaints about "PC culture" are really people saying "I have to stop being an asshole"):

"This isn’t about PC culture taking over. This isn’t about “the patriarchy.” This is about basic human decency. If you think that politics have no part in skateboarding, that everyone should just shut up and go skate: skateboarding has always been political and will continue to be. Skateboarding is not exempt from the pitfalls of sexism or power corruption. We don’t get to dust off our hands and walk away from the discussion; if anything, we’ve only just started.

I’m not asking for skateboarders to exemplify some impossible pinnacle of human morality. I want to stress my experiences so that you can learn from them and better understand what it feels like to be a woman in this specific world. While the path to equality may seem daunting, there are easy ways to push forward.

You can lead by example: by treating others with kindness and egalitarianism. Think about what you are saying before you speak, and call things out when they don’t sit right with you. This doesn’t mean you have to be fearful of everything you say, it’s rather the opposite. This is an opportunity to use the weight that your words and actions carry for the better. You have power and agency. Use it."

As myself and numerous other posters have said, Linnea has done a really good job of anticipating potential responses to her article and its objective and addressing them in advance.  So have the people complaining about her and her piece actually read the article with any degree of care?

[Sleazy]

you make great points but are arguing with yourself here a bit or aren't reading and responding to things that me and others are posting.

in the post that you immediately replied to i said

i didn't read anyone saying there wasn't sexism in skateboarding.

so i'm not sure i get why you are banging the drum so hard that folks are arguing that this doesn't happen or that it's not bad that it does happen. and in my original post i also said

uhhhh... yeah, just like all the parks i go too

on the harassment side the one story where she shared details about an encounter felt more to me about a problem with partying culture than skateboard situations. if you are going to a hotel at night, wasted to meet friend you are going to an obvious heavy partying situation at that point, not a skateboarding one. and i'm not sure how going meet some people at a hotel at night with a guy wasted seems like a safe thing for a girl to do. pretty sure most guys would have a problem with their girlfriend\wife if they told them these were the choices they made that got them into an awkward situation because most guys would tell their girl "what the hell where you thinking?". and how does an uber not make more sense than going to sleep in the hotel room of a guy that just lied to get you into the hotel room and you two are both wasted.

her points about objectification in skating are spot on and relatable for me. i'd be pretty annoyed if i went in a skate shop with my daughter and there were boards with vag's on them hanging on the wall and flyers talking about sluts. i used to hate those hubba ads, that shit was so cheesy and now that i have a daughter it would also be embarrassing in a different way.

however, just because she is making some good points and calling out real problems doesn't mean that everything in her article is relatable to everyone everywhere or that nothing in the article can be questioned. asking if she actually skates and questioning how going out partying has anything to do with skating both seem like valid questions to me. and just because you question one aspect of what someone is saying doesn't mean you completely disagree with them or that you don't agree with most of what they are saying. we don't have to simplify everything into an all or none situation. a few people raised a few questions. no one is saying there isn't sexism in skateboarding, or at least i missed it if someone did.

[listentoaheartbeat]

asking if she actually skates and questioning how going out partying has anything to do with skating both seem like valid questions to me.

How is that even remotely relevant in context of the issue she is raising? However, she explicitly states that she loves skateboarding. I doubt anyone would even ask this question if the author was a dude. This is part of the problem. Female skateboarders have to face a ridiculous amount of doubt, suspicion, scorn, and worse. They do not have the privilege of experiencing skateboarding as a safe haven.

[I sniff Jim Gagne's butthole all the time]

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asking if she actually skates and questioning how going out partying has anything to do with skating both seem like valid questions to me.

[close]

How is that even remotely relevant in context of the issue she is raising? However, she explicitly states that she loves skateboarding. I doubt anyone would even ask this question if the author was a dude. This is part of the problem. Female skateboarders have to face a ridiculous amount of doubt, suspicion, scorn, and worse. They do not have the privilege of experiencing skateboarding as a safe haven.

i've asked people on here if they skate. i heard a bunch of this lady's criticsims in real life recently but ya know what? she  didn't skate. she goes 'i don't wanna be treated like a girl but i don't wanna be treated like one of the guys'.
make up your mind.
she wants us to be flirty or some shit but not really? idk.
but she used my board and could barely push, damn sure wasn't in the realm of ripping.
if we treat her w/ respect then it's lowering the bar and anyone's a skater by putting on a thrasher shirt.
that said, i'd never disrespect anyone who's legit going for it. if you're trying, you're a skater.
if homegirl rips then her thesis has validity.

[Chavo]

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There are also other dynamics at play with female skateboarders. Attractive girl skaters probably have vastly different experiences compared to unattractive ones, as well as perceived straight vs. gay. The very few times I've seen attractive beginner female skateboarders, I couldn't help but think they're slaloming through cocks all day.

[close]

That's probably because you're a piece of shit who doesn't think of women as anything but sex objects.

Your mother's a piece of shit. I am recalling a specific incident in which I observed a female beginner trying to skate at Venice Skatepark while other guys constantly approached her with inane smalltalk. No one said anything ostensibly out of line or made lewd remarks behind her back. I just wonder if a 19 year old male beginner were to show up there, would ten people interrupt him, as he's struggling to stay in a straight line for more than five feet, and ask how long he's been skating? Maybe the girl is not being sexually harassed per se (in fact, they seemed overly helpful), however, her skateboarding experience will be considerably different based on her gender (amongst other factors).

We can also look at our own industry to see how physical attractiveness can lead to million dollar contracts while someone who paid her dues since PJ Ladd's Wonderful, Horrible, Life relies and contest earnings to eke out a living.

[roba]

We can also look at our own industry to see how physical attractiveness can lead to million dollar contracts while someone who paid her dues since PJ Ladd's Wonderful, Horrible, Life relies and contest earnings to eke out a living.

for real though, the fact that the best known female skater does shit like this is definitely not helping

[oyolar]

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There are also other dynamics at play with female skateboarders. Attractive girl skaters probably have vastly different experiences compared to unattractive ones, as well as perceived straight vs. gay. The very few times I've seen attractive beginner female skateboarders, I couldn't help but think they're slaloming through cocks all day.

[close]

That's probably because you're a piece of shit who doesn't think of women as anything but sex objects.

[close]

Your mother's a piece of shit. I am recalling a specific incident in which I observed a female beginner trying to skate at Venice Skatepark while other guys constantly approached her with inane smalltalk. No one said anything ostensibly out of line or made lewd remarks behind her back. I just wonder if a 19 year old male beginner were to show up there, would ten people interrupt him, as he's struggling to stay in a straight line for more than five feet, and ask how long he's been skating? Maybe the girl is not being sexually harassed per se (in fact, they seemed overly helpful), however, her skateboarding experience will be considerably different based on her gender (amongst other factors).

We can also look at our own industry to see how physical attractiveness can lead to million dollar contracts while someone who paid her dues since PJ Ladd's Wonderful, Horrible, Life relies and contest earnings to eke out a living.

Ah sorry man. I totally misread your original post and overreacted.  I apologize. 

[planman]

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We can also look at our own industry to see how physical attractiveness can lead to million dollar contracts while someone who paid her dues since PJ Ladd's Wonderful, Horrible, Life relies and contest earnings to eke out a living.

[close]

for real though, the fact that the best known female skater does shit like this is definitely not helping

Probably doesn't help but I guess she's completely allowed to own her sexuality/public image and its subsequent presentation. That presents another issue in and of itself though because yes, it's good that girls like Leticia are able to use skateboarding to get the money that they deserve but at the same time it can send of the message that it's okay think of a female skater as a sex symbol first and a skateboarder second.

[doomstation55]

Putting that Leticia photo in context, it was from ESPN "The Body" issue which has male and female athletes posing nude, for the most part trying to give a depiction of what an athlete's body looks like. It wasn't like a Maxim shoot or something. If anything it's more offensive because it pushes the "skateboarders are athletes" Olympics narrative.

[behavioralguide]

Putting that Leticia photo in context, it was from ESPN "The Body" issue which has male and female athletes posing nude, for the most part trying to give a depiction of what an athlete's body looks like. It wasn't like a Maxim shoot or something. If anything it's more offensive because it pushes the "skateboarders are athletes" Olympics narrative.

you're completely right. But then again this, which is kinda like a maxim shoot, also exists;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTTDStXa_6Q

article was v good and I'd hate to be a girl in skateboarding,
to be part of a group of homies and still have to endure shit like that...
hope time and more girls in skateboarding will change this cause apparently some skaters fail to see the problem :/

[Francis Xavier]

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Putting that Leticia photo in context, it was from ESPN "The Body" issue which has male and female athletes posing nude, for the most part trying to give a depiction of what an athlete's body looks like. It wasn't like a Maxim shoot or something. If anything it's more offensive because it pushes the "skateboarders are athletes" Olympics narrative.

[close]

you're completely right. But then again this, which is kinda like a maxim shoot, also exists;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTTDStXa_6Q

article was v good and I'd hate to be a girl in skateboarding,
to be part of a group of homies and still have to endure shit like that...
hope time and more girls in skateboarding will change this cause apparently some skaters fail to see the problem :/

Blame Leticia's agent

[fulltechnicalskizzy]

cant blame her shes just a girl

[eraserheadfuckers]

as long as skateboarding is majority male, we have a problem.

[I sniff Jim Gagne's butthole all the time]

as long as skateboarding is majority male, we have a problem.

take a time out until 50% of women have started shredding bullets.

[chirs]

as long as skateboarding is majority male, we have a problem.

jesus, this is the funniest thing ive read on slap in a while

[shripshrapper]

Aren't people who skateboard actually one of the smallest minorities ever? Like there's only 1,000 of us in the world.

[eraserheadfuckers]

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as long as skateboarding is majority male, we have a problem.

[close]

jesus, this is the funniest thing ive read on slap in a while

Why is that funny?

Unless there's something biological that pushes women away from skateboarding, there's no acceptable reason for half of the population to be so poorly represented in our culture.

[I sniff Jim Gagne's butthole all the time]

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as long as skateboarding is majority male, we have a problem.

[close]

jesus, this is the funniest thing ive read on slap in a while

[close]

Why is that funny?

Unless there's something biological that pushes women away from skateboarding, there's no acceptable reason for half of the population to be so poorly represented in our culture.

there needs to be 50% women on garbage trucks. and oil drilling. and sumo wrestling. and prison inmates.
i'm all for more women in skating but to think we need 50% is asinine.
no fucking quotas, no forced skating, let people gravitate to what they want to.

[tortfeasor]

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as long as skateboarding is majority male, we have a problem.

[close]

jesus, this is the funniest thing ive read on slap in a while

[close]

Why is that funny?

Unless there's something biological that pushes women away from skateboarding, there's no acceptable reason for half of the population to be so poorly represented in our culture.

A) that's your problem not ours. i don't really care who does or does not skate.  if 3 million women started skateboarding tomorrow i would still skate with the same 2-6 people.  the only thing that would change is my spots would probably get blown out. I am cool with women skating but i don't see it as a "problem"  that they are underrepresented in what really boils down to an asinine hobby. its not like we are talking about impact professions.

b) risk tolerance and aversion are pretty well studied fields.  whether its biological or cultural or whatever there is a divide. there are outliers and counter arguments but there is a body of work that says men are generally risk tolerant and women are generally risk averse. so without a massive cultural shift-- its unlikely you would get balance in a high risk activity.

c) you  (and others) are getting so fucking far from the article.  maybe im being egocentric but its really more about men than women (i feel safe saying its not about women at all, its about how men treated one woman).   more representation is not going to solve the issue, it would probably exacerbate it. its the guys that have to fucking settle down and call each other out for being jackasses at best, fucking creeps at worst.