{"id":73059,"date":"2015-08-25T17:11:31","date_gmt":"2015-08-26T01:11:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lukeford.net\/blog\/?p=73059"},"modified":"2015-08-25T17:18:11","modified_gmt":"2015-08-26T01:18:11","slug":"serena-williams-and-sailers-first-law-of-female-journalism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lukeford.net\/blog\/?p=73059","title":{"rendered":"Serena Williams and Sailer’s First Law of Female Journalism"},"content":{"rendered":"

Steve Sailer writes<\/a>: The New York Times Magazine<\/em> has a giant article on tennis player Serena Williams by Claudia Rankine (pictured at right) that serves as yet another illustration of my observation that while many female journalists routinely crusade on the surface against sexism, racism, etc., a close reading of their most passionate articles suggests that their highest priority in demanding a cultural revolution to overturn society’s oppressive values is that they want to wind up being considered hotter-looking.<\/p>\n

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The Meaning of Serena Williams<\/a>
\nOn tennis and black excellence.
\nBy CLAUDIA RANKINE AUG. 25, 2015<\/p>\n

… There is a belief among some African-Americans that to defeat racism, they have to work harder, be smarter, be better. Only after they give 150 percent will white Americans recognize black excellence for what it is. But of course, once recognized, black excellence is then supposed to perform with good manners and forgiveness in the face of any racist slights or attacks. Black excellence is not supposed to be emotional as it pulls itself together to win after questionable calls. And in winning, it\u2019s not supposed to swagger, to leap and pump its fist, to state boldly, in the words of Kanye West, \u2018\u2018That\u2019s what it is, black excellence, baby.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Right, as you can see how black NFL defensive players never visibly celebrate after tackling somebody for just a two-yard gain. The white power structure forces black football players to merely hand the ball to the ref with an aw shucks look. Similarly, LeBron James could dunk the ball, but white society thinks it’s overly abrasive to humiliate your opponents like that, so LeBron just gently lays the ball in the basket.<\/p>\n

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… Imagine that you have to contend with critiques of your body that perpetuate racist notions that black women are hypermasculine and unattractive.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

But it’s also<\/em> racist to wonder if Serena’s giant muscles aren’t wholly the result of black genes. Some people, who look at Serena compared to her older sister Venus<\/a>, wonder if maybe Serena represents not just black nature but advanced nurture too.<\/p>\n

But thinking that<\/em> is racist as well, so just stop thinking.<\/p>\n

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Serena\u2019s grace comes because she won\u2019t be forced into stillness; she won\u2019t accept those racist projections onto her body without speaking back; she won\u2019t go gently into the white light of victory. Her excellence doesn\u2019t mask the struggle it takes to achieve each win. For black people, there is an unspoken script that demands the humble absorption of racist assaults, no matter the scale, because whites need to believe that it\u2019s no big deal. But Serena refuses to keep to that script. Somehow, along the way, she made a decision to be excellent while still being Serena.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\"\"<\/a> It’s like how Muhammad Ali could have exulted over the fallen Sonny Liston, but instead white culture forced him to be impassive.<\/p>\n

Similarly, deep down Tiger Woods might like to pump his fist after making a good putt, but he knows that white country club golfers lynch blacks who get uppity, so he’s never done it (pumping his fist, that is; never making a good putt is only recent).<\/p>\n

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When Serena was a little girl, she was so timid about expressing emotions that her sister Venus once said what a miracle it was that she could summon the courage to speak at all, usually just to ask for food when she was hungry though. She innately sensed that racism was real, immanent, and suffocating. As her body grew, her emotions grew too. Tennis became an outlet for those emotions, an outlet for her humanity. Years of quiet shyness or just fear bloomed forth into an amazing athlete, no one could deny. Suddenly she started to speak, especially on the tennis court, or as her father adoringly dotes, \u201cMy little grunter.\u201d …<\/p>\n

She would feel what she feels in front of everyone, in response to anyone. At Wimbledon this year, for example, in a match against the home favorite Heather Watson, Serena, interrupted during play by the deafening support of Watson, wagged her index finger at the crowd and said, \u2018\u2018Don\u2019t try me.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n