Serena Williams acted completely inappropriately at the U.S. Open. I am not here to defend Serena's actions, but I want to discuss the media attention that Serena has had and the consequence for her actions.
During a match point at the U.S. Open the line judge called Serena on a foot fault, (the line judge made a bad call). I am not 100 percent positive on the exact quote, but rumors going around say Serena said” "If I could, I would take . . . this ball and . . . shove it down your throat." "I swear to God [bleep], I'm taking this ball and I'm shoving it your [bleep]." This was not her first blow up that day. Earlier in the match Serena smashed a racket and she was warned then as well. In tennis after your second warning a point is lost.
That is all fine, I can't help wondering had Serena been a man, would all this have happened? I understand society’s idea that what Serena said was not very lady like, however when you play in the hot sun for hours and hours, people's frustrations build up. Not only did it cost her match she is suspended for the rest of the year. Did the line judge feel threatened because Serena is a strong woman. Is this because of her or sex?
There is precedent for thinking a man might have gotten away with this. John McEnroe was famous for his abusive language, throwing rackets, and having temper tantrums on the court. During a 1979 match between John McEnroe and Ilie Nastase, a rule infraction, the chair umpire awarded a game to McEnroe. Serena also lost the game for rule infractions, but in the case of the men the fans made such a fuss that the referee overturned the penalty and replaced the umpire. In 1999 the line judges didn't typically feel threatened by Marat Safin and he's a 6'4" male who broke 48 tennis rackets that year in fits on the court. Also, Jimmy Connors in the 4th round match at the 1991 Open, exploded twice at the chair umpire. Connors was not assessed any penalty and went on to win the match. The crowd even cheered him on.
Serena Williams was booed. Serena Williams has been on the side of many bad calls. Can they be gender biased? There have been many male athletes who have done worse and said worse and have not been treated as severely. I do not agree with her actions or behavior but I'm also not convinced she is getting fair justice.
I thought the same thing when I saw that whole fuss on the news. I definitely think it was because of her sex. Ex: I recieved detention in high school because I burped. My teacher said "girls don't burp." Another one of my high school teachers wrote in my year book "Meghan, I hope that one day you will turn into a lady." When I applied for a summer job at my local hot dog stand/coffee shop, the woman told me she would rather a guy work the stand outside because the equiptment was heavy and it needed to be carried inside at the end of the day. So, based on just my experiences of gender bias, I believe that yes, she was penalized because she is a woman.
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