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On the NASCAR Discrimination Case
One thing I wanted to note in all my posts I've made, a good majority of my ire (outside of my ire over what happened to Mauricia Grant) is because it's my sport. I'm sure fans of any sport would get pissed because it's their sport, and how dare someone besmirch it's reputation. And it's a select few in this case who worked in a permissive culture. Not that the permissive culture doesn't exist elsewhere in NASCAR - it might and probably does (*coughRoushcough*). But the fans get outraged because they've invested so much into their fannishness. They identify with this sport. And they feel it reflects on them.
That said, I'm a little perturbed with the media. Over the last 24 hours, by the grace of living in NC, I've discovered that Brian France's (still) flawed statements from yesterday weren't fully reported. As a PR professional and a woman, it chafes me that he put so much blame on her because "she didn't report it correctly". Bull-freaking-shit. If your supervisor dismisses your complaints as a woman overreacting and HR professionals reprimand you after you complain, who the hell do you think you can complain to? But I digress - the one thing that was left out of all the print stories I saw (but which a radio broadcast played France actually saying) was that regardless of whether Grant complained in the right way, the allegations will now be investigated. Quite frankly, that should have been the bulk of his message, what he repeated over and over again with *maybe* a mention (although I would have advised against it) that she didn't follow proper procedure as he'd been told.
The crazy thing is, I feel so bad for all the guys (and gals) that work for NASCAR that *don't* act like those officials did. I feel bad for the ones who've had their reputations tarnished by some stupid ass individuals. I hate it for the teams and the drivers who are the face of the sport. They're all now going to be on the defensive for something they didn't do. The actions of a few are hurting a lot.
But all in all, also remember that this just isn't a problem in NASCAR. It's a problem in other sports as well, in other countries, with men as well as women. I don't follow other sports, so honestly, the only thing I can cite is the NBA Isaih Thomas instance outside of motorsports. But in motorsports we have Mario Andretti AND Richard Petty on the same weekend (a couple of years ago) saying that women had no place in motorsports. And some people in Spain taunted Lewis Hamilton because he was black. Mario and Richard were roundly mocked and booed by sports reporters and many fans (because remember, women are 40% of the NASCAR fanbase - something NASCAR needs to remember when handling Mauricia's case). Drivers called them fools and behind the times. The F1 leadership threatened to pull the race from Spain in the future, prompting the government to have to get involved. Personally, I like F1's response - call the shit out and don't stand for it. NASCAR and IRL had their hands tied, because there's a PR problem in calling out your greatest racers and telling them to shut up. But hey, F1 took a stance, money be damned, and taking a strong stance for the integrity of the people in the sport is a good thing. F1 is flawed, but they nailed it that time.
One thing I wanted to note in all my posts I've made, a good majority of my ire (outside of my ire over what happened to Mauricia Grant) is because it's my sport. I'm sure fans of any sport would get pissed because it's their sport, and how dare someone besmirch it's reputation. And it's a select few in this case who worked in a permissive culture. Not that the permissive culture doesn't exist elsewhere in NASCAR - it might and probably does (*coughRoushcough*). But the fans get outraged because they've invested so much into their fannishness. They identify with this sport. And they feel it reflects on them.
That said, I'm a little perturbed with the media. Over the last 24 hours, by the grace of living in NC, I've discovered that Brian France's (still) flawed statements from yesterday weren't fully reported. As a PR professional and a woman, it chafes me that he put so much blame on her because "she didn't report it correctly". Bull-freaking-shit. If your supervisor dismisses your complaints as a woman overreacting and HR professionals reprimand you after you complain, who the hell do you think you can complain to? But I digress - the one thing that was left out of all the print stories I saw (but which a radio broadcast played France actually saying) was that regardless of whether Grant complained in the right way, the allegations will now be investigated. Quite frankly, that should have been the bulk of his message, what he repeated over and over again with *maybe* a mention (although I would have advised against it) that she didn't follow proper procedure as he'd been told.
The crazy thing is, I feel so bad for all the guys (and gals) that work for NASCAR that *don't* act like those officials did. I feel bad for the ones who've had their reputations tarnished by some stupid ass individuals. I hate it for the teams and the drivers who are the face of the sport. They're all now going to be on the defensive for something they didn't do. The actions of a few are hurting a lot.
But all in all, also remember that this just isn't a problem in NASCAR. It's a problem in other sports as well, in other countries, with men as well as women. I don't follow other sports, so honestly, the only thing I can cite is the NBA Isaih Thomas instance outside of motorsports. But in motorsports we have Mario Andretti AND Richard Petty on the same weekend (a couple of years ago) saying that women had no place in motorsports. And some people in Spain taunted Lewis Hamilton because he was black. Mario and Richard were roundly mocked and booed by sports reporters and many fans (because remember, women are 40% of the NASCAR fanbase - something NASCAR needs to remember when handling Mauricia's case). Drivers called them fools and behind the times. The F1 leadership threatened to pull the race from Spain in the future, prompting the government to have to get involved. Personally, I like F1's response - call the shit out and don't stand for it. NASCAR and IRL had their hands tied, because there's a PR problem in calling out your greatest racers and telling them to shut up. But hey, F1 took a stance, money be damned, and taking a strong stance for the integrity of the people in the sport is a good thing. F1 is flawed, but they nailed it that time.
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