#meninsports

What makes a man masculine or feminine may be based on his culture. Pascoe argues that boys of color had different expectations that white boys. Ferber argues that black and white athletes are also viewed very different. I do not think either author would agree with the other simply because their focus areas are different. Pascoe is generalizing why/how white boys and colored boys are different. Ferber is trying to justify why black men are more likely to succeed in sports than a white man. My personal belief is that a black man will be discriminated against unless he is in the entertainment business and making money for the white man. In the article “The construction of Black Masculinity White Supremacy Now and Then” Ferber states, “Black men have been defined as a threat throughout American history while being accepted in roles that serve and entertain White people, where they can ostensibly be controlled and made appear nonthreatening” (page 12). This quote confirms that my belief is true. Black men are used for pure entertainment and money machines.

“Dude, You’re a Fag: Adolescent Male Homophobia” was written by Pascoe. This article talks about the different way colored boys and black boys use the term fag. White boys use it in a way to feminize their friends. Caring about you clothes or dancing who lead a boy to be referred to as a fag. The boys throughout the story always wanted to be less feminine then the next. White boys also thought it was silly to dance together. When paired up in class they joked with each other and didn’t take it seriously. Colored boys didn’t use the term fag to feminize another friend of theirs. They used the referred to being white as feminine. In the culture sense white boys were already girly to them. Colored boy’s are more muscular than white boys and had tougher mentalities. Colored boys cared about their clothes because that’s what hip-hop resembled. Being “put together” and dancing made you cool. In the white culture dancing was also an association with being a fag. But in the colored culture dancing gave you status. The main point Pascoe was making was that what one thing means in one culture could mean the opposite in another. Colored boys and white boys cared about different things. When you have interracial friendships each person has to accept the differences. Colored boys and white boys could partake in the same activities and be viewed differently, especially in sports. This leads to Ferber argument about the differences involving race and sports.

Ferber argues that black men succeed in sports because they bodies are beastly. Black men have been used as money bags by the “white man” for countless years in spots. White men invest in teams and make a lot of money off their success. Yes, black men are paid for playing but nobody wants to be used. White men or people in general worship a black athlete based off his body and skill in the sport. But when a black man goes to apply for a job he is discriminated against. In some situations black men are over qualified for the job but won’t get the position based of his skin tone. When it comes to positions that require knowledge then black men are a threat. In relation to sports white men succeed in the athletic word because they are smart and hardworking. Black men succeed because they have the natural gifts that get them by. Ferber’s argument amuses me because  the same theory can be flipped to why white me are more than likely to get a job before a colored man. For example, the only way for a colored man to succeed is if is smart and hardworking and a white man succeeds because he is white, which is his natural gift.