What color would you like Gaulding?

Business must be way off in Minnesota, and after these many years Gaulding either just doesn’t get, or can’t get over it. What a shame that she has such a small mind; but wait! Perhaps she is embarking on a whole new cohort of victims who are offended by locker rooms. Surely Native Americans are pained by anything with a bronze or orange hue, and Orientals by shades of yellow. The Irish would certainly take strong exception to using their trademark color to “intimidate.” Let’s just paint them all blue — the color of the vernacular most typical of opposing team locker rooms, and the sad emotional state of a lawyer with too few windmills with which to joust.

Scott, at 7:25 am EST on December 4, 2007

Calming Effect?

If I’m not mistaken, pink has a calming effect on people. This is exactly why Coach Fry wanted to do this...to give the Hawkeyes an advantage over their sedated opponents. (Apparently it still didn’t help Iowa get a winning record this year.) That’s also why some prisons have been painted pink as of late.

Robert, PhD Student at University of Wisconsin-Madison, at 7:50 am EST on December 4, 2007

I have an idea...lets paint all the locker rooms egg shell. This way we will be sure not to offend anyone...but wait....eggshell would surely make the chickens of the world feel bad because eggshell is a Chicken color.

Holy smokes.....I have been on this wonderous planet for 50 years and NEVER did I see the Crayola Box have markings on it highlighting the boy colors or girl colors. I happenn to own and proudly wear pink oxford dress shirts and sweaters...now no one sent me an email or fax to tip me off to the girl/boy color scheme. In fact, my daughter thinks men look handsome wearing pink....

Some academics need to spend more time teaching our youth and less time trying to get their mugs on CNN.

I am goning to contact MACY’s and complain about the color of their men’s changing rooms...I think the off white color they use is degrading and offensive to men.I am offened and will probably require a large amount of counseling to make myself feel better.

Kurt, at 8:05 am EST on December 4, 2007

Go Gaulding!

Gaulding is right — the visiting team at Iowa is surrounded in pink, and thus defined as “girls", a put down in the macho world of football. This makes the university complicit in promoting the anti-female, yes, sexist viewpoints. If a lawsuit is required to fix this, all power to the suit. To change the paint in no insult to the former coach — just a recognition that time moves on. Good coaches would be the last to deny that it’s wise to keep up to date, and to avoid distracting controversies.

mark, at 8:30 am EST on December 4, 2007

I am female and don’t take offense at a room painted pink. I’m a little surprised though that they went that route originally IF the true intention was to make a calming environment when, according to many interior design websites and designers, the most calming colors are pastel blues and greens, as well as neutral tones. This causes me to question the motivation then for choosing pink and if there was gender-based significance which I then find somewhat offensive, but not enough to make a national issue of it when there are so many more important issues.

Julie, at 9:10 am EST on December 4, 2007

Stomach Ache

Actually, a deep pink is intended to invoke the image — and associated queasiness — of Pepto Bismol, or generic bismuth-containing medicines. So, the legal action should be for trademark or patent infringement, much like those stupid Coke vs. Coke Zero ads.

What would happen if our women’s basketball team painted the visitors dressing rooms pink? Surely this would not be self-hate.

This subject reveals the as yet unplumbed depths of idiocy.

Fecalito, at 9:15 am EST on December 4, 2007

If painting a male locker room pink is sexist and offensive to women, then painting a female locker room blue (just as “traditionally” male as pink is female) must be sexist and offensive, as well. We wouldn’t want to risk implying that women athletes are masculine, “butch,” or less than feminine because they change their clothes in a blue room.

GVHaltren, at 10:00 am EST on December 4, 2007

Old tricks, new days

All these negative comments (exception = 1)are merely testament to how entrenched and institutionalized — no, accepted — sexual discrimination is (at least most racists at have a small and superficial level of moral awareness enough to be embarrassed about their racism and attempt to hide it). The fact that an entire university system (i.e, a medium-sized corporation, or small city) supports an act that is so clearly designed to denigrate women by creating the association between weak players and the female sex is appalling. It is no small or petty thing, contrary to many of the posts here. Substitute other racial or ethnic symbolic associations and plaster them all over the opposing team’s locker room and see what you get? The original coach was simply clever and avoiding confrontation by telling the world that pink was a calming color. Everyone knew what the jig was — then as now. I don’t know who he was and I don’t care how revered he was; the act speaks for itself. It’s walking like a duck and it’s talking like a duck... Guess what? The oldest trick in the book is to discredit an idea by discrediting the person putting the idea forth. Here we go again. There have been many long-held traditions that were either racist or ethnically discriminatory that have been abandoned, as they should have be. Others still need to be. This is no different, and is not a minor issue that does disservice to the feminist cause. This is about as in-your-face as misogynism gets (multiply that sexist message times how many players use that locker room and absorb that message...hmm. Not so small, is it?). The fact that so many people pretend to not understand this is, frankly, depressing. Say what you will (and I’m sure you will), wrong is wrong. And for a major university to stand behind it (really, isn’t it about the money behind the university that threatens to walk?) simply reminds me what a very long way we have to go...

Susan, at 10:00 am EST on December 4, 2007

fallacy of presentism

When Gaulding states, “I don’t think this is about Hayden Fry or his intention in the 1980s; I think this is about how people understand the locker room in 2007,” surely she recognizes that she too will be judged by history. And history—let’s not even think about how we might be judged by the “democracy of the dead"—is surely going to look back at this public spectacle and snicker at our naive, provincial, presentist hubris. Be careful, Gaulding. History’s judgments can sometimes come more swiftly and more ruthlessly than we think.

Mitya1102, at 10:15 am EST on December 4, 2007

Prison Pink

Anyone who has toured Alcatraz will recall that that infamous prison’s interiors were painted pink, oh so many years ago, because, we were told by the tour guide, psychologists claimed that pink had a pacifying effect on the inmates. Whether this is true or not I cannot say, but certainly football coaches are always looking for that little psychological edge to win a game (e.g., the calling of a timeout before a kicker is ready to kick a field goal).

Ted, at 12:40 pm EST on December 4, 2007

Taken at face value...

Iowa’s home-game record was 25-2 as of mid-Oct. last year, this season notwithstanding, something was at work there...who knows?

As for former Iowa coach, Hayden Fry who was widely known for his shrewd playcalling and appropriately nicknamed, “The Fox", perhaps he really simply wanted every advantage he could obtain.

Besides, politically correct or not, questioning one’s manhood would probably generate the opposite result for which it was intended.

Call me crazy in Ohio, at 1:20 pm EST on December 4, 2007

Susan

Susan said: “Substitute other racial or ethnic symbolic associations and plaster them all over the opposing team’s locker room and see what you get?”

They didn’t do that at the visitor’s locker room in the Iowa football stadium. They simply painted the walls pink. Please try to come up with something better than the slippery slope/strawman argument. It’s less than weak.

Susan also said: “This is about as in-your-face as misogynism gets....”

Oh really? This is worse than Don Imus’ “nappy headed hos” comment on a national radio show? This is worse than job discrimination? the glass ceiling? pornography? sexual assault?

As the husband of a woman and the father of two daughters, a pink locker room.....in a space that is probably never occupied by women anyway.....is pretty far down my list of worries about how society treats the women I love.

John Doe, at 2:20 pm EST on December 4, 2007

To Orson and John Doe

Another good question — why does society downplay the effects of everyday sexism by asymmetrically comparing them to life-or-death issues?

M, Intructor at An Illinois Community College, at 4:20 pm EST on December 4, 2007

As always, this issue tends to draw more heat than light, at least in a comments forum. But if any reader would like to know more facts before forming an opinion, he or she can contact me (jill(dot)gaulding(at)comcast(dot)net) and ask for the PLR “FAQ” I’ve put together. The information unconscious cognitive bias may be particularly helpful to those who think I should pick other battles.

The FAQ also quotes Coach Fry on the issue, for those who are interested: he said one reason he created the PLR was because pink is the color of “girls” and “sissies.” In other words, Coach Fry himself admitted that the PLR was intended, at least in part, as a gendered put down of the opposing team — and that is certainly the way it is understood.

As to whether other feminists agree with me: I’ll have to respectfully request that the respondent pool include more than Ms. Althouse, since I wouldn’t take her view on this issue (or many feminist issues) as definitive.

Jill Gaulding, Getting the Facts Right, at 4:20 pm EST on December 4, 2007

Not about women

This whole discussion is not really about what anyone “thinks” of women. The visiting men are the issue.

If it’s about the color pink and its gender association alone, then it’s clearly about what the visiting men’s team IS NOT, (not manly, etc.) To say, a man is more like the opposite gender, does not demean women. It is merely stating that he is not being associated with the attributes of the typical male.

This comparison could be as innocuous as saying “that man is as smart as a brick", or “talking with him is like talking to a wall". In neither case is the brick, nor the wall, demeaned.

Misdirection, at 6:15 pm EST on December 4, 2007

Pink Citations Anyone?

Pink Communist indicates he found no information on calming pink, but says he didn’t look hard. Obviously not. The search for Banker-Miller Pink (on Google, no less) popped up a copy of a 1981 article on the subject by Alexander Schauss as the first hit. The second item in the Google que was interesting because it indicates that additional research has offered data that indicates that the calming aspect may not be as effective as initial research suggested it might be. Those interested in journal articles might look for:

Johnston, David. “The Pink Jail,” Corrections Magazine, 7:29-32. (June, 1981)

Pelligrini, Robert et al., “Room Color and Aggression in a Criminal Detention Holding Cell: A Test of the Tranquilizing Pink Hypothesis,” The Journal of Orthomolecular Psychiatry, 10:171-181. (1981)

Schauss, Alexander, “Application of Behavioral Photobiology to Human Aggression: Baker-Miller Pink,” The International Journal for Biosocial Research, 2:25-27. (1981).

Or just Google “Bkaer-Miller Pink.”

To “M:” I think it poor form to accuse people of lying, unless you can offer some sort of empirical evidence to support the claim. I’ve just offered you several citations indicating the ‘passive pink’ was, in fact a recognized theory in the early 1980’s, and I note that at least one of the items I’ve cited notes that the pacifying aspect of the pink was a reason given for the football coaches painting the visitor’s locker rooms in it. You may disagree, but it would be helpful if you can cite something that shows that they or I am lying. Otherwise, your argument of lying appears specious, and seems more a matter of emotion than logical argument. That certainly doesn’t make feminist scholarship look solid.

Additionally to “M.” The idea that the painting of a men’s locker room pink is a serious threat to women’s health, safety, or dignity is dubious in the eyes of many people, apparently some of whom posted here. While there may well be an aspect of sexism to the coaches decision, I fail to find that this is anything except a threat to the happiness of some feminists. As I noted in my initial post, there are serious problems facing women, and it would seem to me that these are in need of work to change them. To argue that painting a men’s locker room is an act of sexism which is seriously damaging to women is ludicrous at a time when even the New York Times is reporting that devout Moslems in Khartoum were calling for the execution of a teacher for insulting Islam by allowing her class to name a toy bear Mohammed. In other places women have recently been stoned or hanged for adultery, or flogged for behaving without appropriate deference to men (Iran, Taliban controlled areas of Afghanistan). I find it absurd to even call the injured sensibilities due to the choice in locker room decor ’sexism’ in comparison to the well publicized acts of sexism described in the previous sentence.

Orson Buggeigh, at 3:45 am EST on December 5, 2007

Of Course

Of course the PLR implies femininity of the opposing players. It’s not an undertone; it’s in your face. But does it have to imply societal denigration of women in general? Can’t it just be a comparison to the home team? I bet if a rival fielded a team of women against the University of Iowa football team, the U of I would decimate them. Although I don’t think it makes me sexist to think that, but I’m sure others might think so. This whole debate might be a waste of breath, but kind of fun...

E. Ponimus, at 10:40 am EST on December 5, 2007

Pink for Boys

Pink wasn’t a “girl” color until after WWII.

According to the Smithsonian institutes History Wired website:

“...the generally accepted rule is pink for the boy and blue for the girl. The reason is that pink being a more decided and stronger color is more suitable for the boy; while blue, which is more delicate and dainty, is prettier for the girl.”

Quote from:http://historywired.si.edu/object.cfm?ID=477

So maybe the home team’s locker room should be pink instead?

An Academic Librarian, at 3:25 pm EST on December 5, 2007

Missing the point

First I must state that I’m a three time University of Iowa grad (BSE, MSE, PhD) and a lifelong Hawkeye fan.

The point is winning football games. Period.

If the visiting teams speads any time considering the meaning of the color of the locker room, then it is distracting them from preparing for the game. When institured by Hayden Fry it was merely a ploy of gamesmanship. Hayden employed several tactics that were intended to distract the opponent from the matter at hand, which was, and is FOOTBALL. In another fabled story Fry did not allow his punter to warmup before a big game against Michigan. This caught the attention of the Michigan coaching staff. During the pregame handshake the Michigan head coach asked if tehre was something wrong with Iowa’s punter, to which Hayden responded “We don’t intend on using him".

Beyond being a legendary football coach, Hayden was kown as a trickster with a deep bag of tricks. This won him the love and adoration of the Hawkeye faithful, and the disdain of his opponents. In my mind the new pink locker room is a fitting memorial to the shrewd gamesmanship employed by Hayden.

Moreover, it seems that the small number of professors that have been leading the campaign against the locker room decor are transplants from more ’sophisticated’ areas of the country. Perhaps they thought Iowans are too backwards to see the error of our ways and we need to have ‘enlightened’ activists to teach us how to behave in polite society. To these people I say, both the University of Iowa (including its football program) and Hayden Fry have outstanding histories in promoting diversity. For those interested into delving into this history I would point to a Minnesota NPR story on the history of Floyd of Rosedale (available at their website), and the former SMU player inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in the same class as Hayden Fry.

Raymond Richards, at 3:20 pm EST on December 6, 2007

Response to Jill

I want to reiterate one of my original points and attempt to make another.

I strongly believe that Coach Fry’s original intention was to make the opponents using the pink locker room think that either a) they are being taunted, or b) the color has some negative effect (calming) on their athletic performance. The sole purpose of this was/is to get them to think about something other their game strategy/tactics. The new locker room decor is intended to keep part of the spirit of the wily old coach.

Make no mistake, major college football is a high stakes game. I will avoid getting into the discussion on whether or not it should be, the fact is there are great incentives to win. The NCAA is the regulatory body that gets to determine what tactics are acceptable and which ones are not.

If you accept my premise that the intention of the new locker decor is to keep alive the spirit of a crafty coach, and that the intention of that crafty coach was to get his opponents to think about the decor instead of preparing for the impending contest, the question boils down to whether or not the locker room decor is damaging to anybody.

Clearly you can not make a case that any individual has suffered direct harm from the offending locker room. The case is that the locker room is injuring society in some fashion. Again you’ll be hard pressed to come up with direct proof. Part of your difficulty in making your case is that this is a locker room used exclusively for football. Arguably the sport that most favors males over females. It is a sport where only a tiny percentage of population have the physical characteristics to make them competitive. I will make the assertion that the percentage of females that can hope to compete in football at this level is orders of magnitude smaller then the percentage of males who can hope to compete.

My point is that all of your arguments are subjective or anecdotal, you’ll be hard pressed to make a compelling case to change the locker room.

I for one strongly believe:

1. Society is not being harmed

2. No individual or group is being harmed

3. ‘Pinking up’ the locker room is a clever tactic (Thanks Coach Fry!)

4. The Hawkeyes have to have a better year next year

I’m not a sexist. Some of my best friends are women, I even married one. (I’m just being silly)

GO HAWKS!

Raymond Richards, at 11:00 am EST on December 7, 2007

I cant help but smirk

What if i said that most of you were plain Nuts-have i just made a male-oriented reference that indirectly restricts the rights of those who may not have them

To the red-faced feminists; YOUR TIME HAS COME AND GONE-Nobody wants to hear about systematic sexism or the archaic and limiting constuct of Gender because nobody really cares. Because the battle is over...step back and enjoy your political parity

Most people readily agree that pink is considered feminine.

So what? It is. Woman tend to be more womanly...and guys tend to be more like guys. In a sport relying on physical prowess, the qualities of a woman are less likely to triumph when countered against qualities typically found in a man. Woman are weaker. Fact. Pink is associated with women. Fact Locker room is painted pink to influence other teams behavior.

Lastly, nobody has really discussed who is actually discriminated against here? Who has standing?

brudd, Lawyer at marriage, at 4:25 pm EST on December 7, 2007

Wha??

When are people going to stop fighting and complaining about things that have no relevance. I think that people need to let things go and QUIT trying to start an uproar. I am sure that everyone (football players, etc) does not feel that this is a sexual discrimination case. Maybe they shuld fight the war on poverty instead.

Hawkfan, at 1:05 pm EST on December 20, 2007