They zip around the rink, armed with helmets, pads and mouthguards. They push, bump and occasionally crash out as they jostle for position on the hardwood floor.
But for the women of the Long Island Roller Rebels, their biggest battle is taking place outside the suburban strip-mall roller rink where they’re girding for the upcoming roller derby season.
The nearly 20-year-old amateur league is suing a county leader over an executive order meant to prevent women’s and girl’s leagues and teams with transgender players from using county-run parks and fields. The league’s legal effort, backed by the New York Civil Liberties Union, has thrust it into the national discussion over the rights of transgender athletes.
Amanda Urena, the league’s vice president, said there was never any question the group would take a stand.
“The whole point of derby has been to be this thing where people feel welcome,” said the 32-year-old Long Island native, who competes as “Curly Fry” and identifies as queer, at a recent practice at United Skates of America in Seaford. “We want trans women to know that we want you to come play with us, and we’ll do our very best to keep fighting and making sure that this is a safe space for you to play.”
I disagree with excluding trans individuals from sports, but I can understand that there might be some leagues that disagree with me. So if a league or a private group wants to start discriminating based on some horseshit arguments about competitive advantage, I would simply boycot that league and move on with my day. I can’t control what private groups want to do, and I can’t force them to change eligibility requirements.
This isn’t that.
an executive order meant to prevent women’s and girl’s leagues and teams with transgender players from using county-run parks and fields.
What the fuck is this? There isn’t even a horseshit argument about competitive advantage here. Are they saying that trans women are going to have so much testosterone that they tear up the fields? It’s just bigotry, and it’s government sponsored bigotry. We can do something about that.
This is where all the vitriol over trans women in sports leads. Roller derby is such a hugely queer sport, I’m so proud of them for taking a stand to defend their teammates.
So if a league or a private group wants to start discriminating based on some horseshit arguments about competitive advantage, I would simply boycot that league and move on with my day.
I would agree to an extent. I don’t know if I would be okay with a ‘whites only’ league existing.
I wouldn’t be OK with it, but I wouldn’t have much to do about it. If it were government sponsored, I’d have a lot of things I’d be doing about it.
Boycot in this context can vary from not buying the product (tickets) to pipebombs in an office building
Pipe bombs are absolutely not the same thing as a boycott.
There should be some kind of way to add a “joke” -tag in a message
That would require making a joke first. I don’t see how saying you’ll bomb a government office is a joke.
I would hope all sports there would make that stand but I knew 110% roller derby would.
I’m not into sports, but I’ve known several women who have done roller derby and they are all very cool people.
Which is interesting for a kind of violent sport.
I mean it can be a pretty good form of anger release.
Catharsis is a hell of a drug.
I could see that. People who box feel that way too.
The woven I know who have done roller derby and rugby tend to all be chill af.
Sent the old white dude an angry email. It is nice when the website lets you do that easily
https://www.nassaucountyny.gov/481/County-Executive
Guy looks like the offspring of Kris Kobach and Mike Pence.
I work in government.
Zero of our elected officials use their official email addresses. I have to call their personal phones to find out if they’re going to make a meeting.
Noted and thanks. I will use the fax number on the site.
I mean yeah, they need all the people they can get
Roller derby is HUGE in the queer community, particularly queer women. My guess is, if you have this take, you’re not really involved in LGBT culture.
Roller derby began its modern revival in Austin, Texas in the early 2000s as an all-female, woman-organized amateur sport.[50] By August 2006, there were over 135 similar leagues.[51] Leagues outside the U.S. also began forming in 2006, and international competition soon followed. There are over 2,000 amateur leagues worldwide[52] in countries including Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, France,[53] Brazil, Germany, Belgium, Finland, Norway,[54] Sweden,[55] Denmark,[56] Israel,[57] Singapore,[58][59][60] UAE,[61][62] Egypt,[63][64][65] Thailand,[66] and China.[67] In many international leagues, gear and equipment must be imported.[68] Roller derby’s contemporary resurgence has been regarded as an aspect of globalization which demonstrates “the speed with which pop culture is now transported by highly mobile expatriates and social media, while also highlighting the changing role of women in many societies”.[2]
Many roller derby leagues are amateur, self-organized and all-female[69] and were formed in a do-it-yourself spirit by relatively new enthusiasts.[70] In many leagues (especially in the U.S.), a punk[71][72] aesthetic and/or third-wave feminist[73] ethic is prominent.[74] Members of fledgling leagues often practice and strategize together, regardless of team affiliation, between bouts.[75] Most compete on flat tracks, though several leagues skate on banked tracks, with more in the planning stages.[76]
Each league typically features local teams in public bouts that are popular with a diverse fan base.[77] Some venues host audiences ranging up to 7,000.[78] Successful local leagues have formed traveling teams comprising the league’s best players to compete with comparable teams from other cities and regions. In February 2012, the International Olympic Committee considered roller derby, amongst eight other sports, for inclusion in the 2020 Olympic Games.[79][80]
In 2009, the feature film Whip It featured roller derby and introduced a wider audience to the sport. The WFTDA encouraged leagues to coordinate with promotions during the film’s release to increase awareness of the leagues.[81] Furthermore, corporate advertising has used roller derby themes in television commercials for insurance,[82] a breakfast cereal,[83] and an over-the-counter analgesic.[84]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roller_derby#Contemporary_roller_derby
Doesn’t sound like they do.
Do they? Roller derby is crazy popular in my area. They even have roller derby camps for kids.
