Journal Article — Alice in the Gendered Sports-Fan Wonderland: A Sociological Inquiry — by Elizabeth J. Schumacher

C. Wright Mills encouraged people to develop a sociological imagination in order to “place themselves in social context and identify how public issues affect them at the personal level, arguing that people need to know the source of their difficulties in order to make sense of their lives (Disch 2).” I believe that gender, in many cases, may be the source of such difficulties. Disch goes on to stress the importance of empowerment through the challenging of the patriarchal system. She states that, “without seeing the complexity of human experience and the complexity of human oppression, we cannot begin to address the real needs of human beings caught in systematically oppressive social structures (Disch 14).” Though the feminist movement has vastly improved the situation of women, many challenges and obstacles still endure. Over the past century, substantial progress has been made in the opportunities afforded to women in voting rights, education, and job possibilities, but many social issues still need to be improved. In this paper I will discuss the obstacles women continue to face in their efforts to be seen as equals in the sports world as fans.