Opinion: The LSU Hand Gesture Controversy Reveals Double Standards in Sports
posted by Trever Lloyd | April 10, 2023 | In News, Opinion, SportsOn April 2, the Louisiana State University women’s basketball team made history when they won the national championship game over University of Iowa, 102-87.
However, the actual game has been overshadowed and lost in the ensuing controversy. In the closing seconds before the Tigers were crowned as champions, stand out LSU sophomore Angel Reese followed Iowa All-American Caitlin Clark towards the Iowa bench doing the John Cena, you can’t see me celebration the same celebration Clark did 48 hours earlier in a win against South Carolina. After the incident, Reese has gone viral, some calling her classless, while others have no problem since sports and trash talk go hand-in-hand.
The term “selective outrage” comes to one’s mind when talking about Reese’s actions during the game. Because when Clark, a white female, did the celebration that’s her playing with swagger, that competitive edge that’s good for the game of women’s basketball, but when Reese does the same celebration it’s ghetto, arrogant and classless.
Reese, nicknamed the Bayou Barbie, has addressed the controversy in the post-game press conference stating: “All year, I was critiqued for who I was. I don’t fit the narrative; I don’t fit the box that y’all want me to be in. I’m too hood. I’m too ghetto. Y’all told me that all year. But when other people do it, and y’all don’t say nothing. So this is for the girls that look like me. For those that want to speak up for what they believe in. It’s unapologetically you. And that’s what I did it for tonight. It was bigger than me tonight. And Twitter is going to go into a rage every time.”
Photo courtesy of Todd Martin
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.