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Tuesday, September 13, 2016
Unsportsmanlike Conduct: College Football and the Politics of Rape by Jessica Luther is one of the most thorough and thoughtful books I have ever read. The relationship between violence, specifically against women, and sports, especially football, has never been more in the news and discussed than it has in the last few years. However, often it is discussed and that is it. No real change is made, or even suggested. The systems that protect those who commit violence remain unexamined, and those who profit from these systems continue to live their lives as if there is nothing wrong. In Unsportsmanlike Conduct, Jessica Luther takes a stand to change all of that.Luther uses her journalistic skills to examine the relationship between college football and sexual assault. She uses cases going back to the 1970s to illustrate various aspects of this relationship. After a detailed introduction that defines terms and sets the stage for the conversation, the book is split into two halves. The first half examines "the playbook" as it stands. The playbook is how teams, universities, the NCAA, the media, and fans have responded to allegations of sexual assault against players in the past, and for the most part, how they continue to respond. Each institution is culpable in perpetuating systems that shame victims and go out of the way to protect perpetrators of violence. The second half of the book offers thirteen suggestions to change the playbook as it stands.
I appreciate that Luther tackles such an important topic. She doesn't shy away from difficult subjects that most would rather avoid. I also really like that she offers potential solutions, and doesn't just point out problems. She admits her own struggle in dealing with sexual assault allegations as a lifelong college football fan. Nothing can change if it remains unexamined or discussed. People who are willing to put money or even just the sometimes almost religious experience of being a fan of a huge football program ahead of the well-being of non-football playing students and others who don't have as much "value" have to own that they are part of the problem. Luther does a great job of pointing out how various groups are at fault, and how each group can change. Violence in our culture is not just the responsibility of those who commit it; everyone can be a part of the solution is we are only willing to ask, "How?"
I recieved this book for free through LibraryThing. I was not required to write a review at all, much less a positive one.
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