Kristen Block (kblock@hotmail.com)
Tue, 05 Jan 1999 12:02:37 CST
I shared your frustration this Christmas season as I tried to buy a
poster featuring a positive woman athlete for my 14-yr. old cousin. I
had seen some of the posters that Nike put out for their innovative
women in sports ad campaigns (most notably the "If you let me play..."
example). I went to the NikeTown here in Chicago only to find that they
had discontinued poster sales. I was given a number to call to request
a brochure, but by the time I got the catalog and phoned to place my
order, all of the women-centered posters were gone. (I did not check to
see if their rendition of scantily clad Gabrielle Reese's poster
entitled "Beauty and the Beach" were still in stock.) I kept searching
while home with my family in Lincoln, Nebraska, home to one of the
finest women's volleyball teams in the nation. Although I did run
across one or two tennis or skiing posters, ones representing the sports
that most girls have a chance to play as they are growing up (basketball
-- what about the WNBA?, volleyball and softball) were nowhere to be
found. I found myself wondering, "why the silence?" Is it that no one
makes posters that feature women athletes, or do certain shops refuse to
stock them, relying instead on more sex-typed "sports for boys, flowers
for girls" for their sales? I'd also be interested in finding a place
to purchase posters that show women athletes.
Kristen Block
The Newberry Library
Chicago, IL 60610
kblock@hotmail.com
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.0b3 on Wed Jan 06 1999 - 11:00:15 EST