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    ItshardbeingagirlTess Barker
    8/25/15 4:10pm

    Another reason why I prefer pro hockey. No cheerleaders.

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      cathyofthevalleyItshardbeingagirl
      8/25/15 4:13pm

      Instead they have ice girls.

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      GELLA - LLAPItshardbeingagirl
      8/25/15 4:13pm

      they do have ice girls

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    BlueberrypiesTess Barker
    8/25/15 4:14pm

    But can’t you see that paying these women a wage commensurate with their entertainment value would require raising concession stand prices, thus angering the fans? Because profit. Or something.

    Ugh.

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      bwrites enjoyed the time we shared togetherBlueberrypies
      8/25/15 4:20pm

      if you scraped like even $10k from the bottom of each of the players’ salaries, I bet they’d never even know the difference, not to mention $100k from the owner’s

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      TeeBlueberrypies
      8/25/15 4:38pm

      paying these women a wage commensurate with their entertainment value

      But they are. Like the article says, these dance teams are “inherently worthless.”

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    The Ghost of ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ AKA BabyStepsTess Barker
    8/25/15 4:09pm

    “Three other Spirit Team members—Brittany, Brooke, and Kellie—stood by Candace. . .”

    I broke out in uproarious laughter at this point!

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      arewemenoramidevoThe Ghost of ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ AKA BabySteps
      8/25/15 4:15pm

      All former members of Lawndale High’s Fashion Club, it sounds like.

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      You're Living All Over Mearewemenoramidevo
      8/25/15 4:19pm

      Sandi, Tiffany, Stacy, and Quinn. So basically yes.

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    911TootherTess Barker
    8/25/15 4:41pm

    “Exploitation of cheerleaders is prevalent across professional sports.”

    You mean they kidnap these precious little girls, stick them in sweatshops for $2.00 a day, make them sleep in tiny gym lockers, feed them left over hot-dog buns and drink re-cycled beer, forced to wear revealing outfits made from the skin of aborted fetuses, wear eye-shadow made from hematite and lipstick from the dried blood of unicorns?

    Yet they keep smiling. Those brave girls. I'll never look at those poor souls without crying.

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      Joseph Finn911Toother
      8/25/15 5:02pm

      Correct. If they’re not being paid for their advertising for the team, they’re being exploited.

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      adultosaur married anna on the astral plane911Toother
      8/25/15 5:08pm

      ah. the zero sum game.

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    TadKosciuszkoTess Barker
    8/25/15 4:11pm

    So is this a continuing story, or did it just end abruptly with no resolution

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      courtTadKosciuszko
      8/25/15 4:17pm

      Yes

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      DashleyinCaliTadKosciuszko
      8/25/15 4:20pm

      The creepy dude was waiting for her at her car? And.... then what? Is he still waiting there?

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    Yoga Nerd, Maybe DeadTess Barker
    8/25/15 4:22pm

    This, more than the monetary cost of makeup, is the true price of being a pretty girl. You are very aware, always, that all of it will eventually fade away.

    This reminds me of an excellent essay I read by a woman examining the phenomenon of the insecure pretty girl being based on the knowledge that beauty is impermanent, and now I can find it. Ring a bell for anyone?

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      DashleyinCaliYoga Nerd, Maybe Dead
      8/25/15 4:29pm

      No, but that passage made me thankful for my Urban Decay makeup setting spray.

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      dalilaYoga Nerd, Maybe Dead
      8/25/15 4:37pm

      No, but would love to read it.

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    SprocheteTess Barker
    8/25/15 4:17pm

    Do you think most of the women do this because they love dancing and cheering, or are they looking to get their foot in the door to be the next Paula Abdul or find the right rich man to marry? I’d imagine cheerleaders meet a lot of rich, powerful men who might give them an audition or other opportunity they might not get otherwise.

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      DashleyinCaliSprochete
      8/25/15 4:22pm

      In LA it’s probably a really great addition to a resume if you’re in entertainment. Other than that, I think maybe it’s a way for women to stay in the dancing world if they ever studied dance?I can see how it would be win-win if dancing was your thing and you had a flexible schedule - like doing community theater if you ever studied acting but live somewhere in Minnesota, you know?

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      kpaupaDashleyinCali
      8/25/15 4:44pm

      I was a HS cheerleader with a girl who went on to teach dance classes and was a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader and then later a Laker Girl. She recently opened up her own dance studio and seems to be very successful. Some people just love dancing and performing.

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    ohnoshedidnotTess Barker
    8/25/15 4:25pm

    This really bothers me...I’ve also read articles that said that when cheerleaders complain, other cheerleaders tell them how many women would kill to be underpaid eye candy for professional teams. Blows my mind.

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      Courtneyohnoshedidnot
      8/25/15 4:58pm

      That happens with anything. No one can ever complain about being underpaid or under-appreciated because “lots of people would kill for your job”. I hate that mentality! Can’t we all wish for something better?

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      Sid Mohnoshedidnot
      8/25/15 4:58pm

      I think that’s the main reason why they’re paid jack shit. The supply of willing dancers is great, and there’s only so many teams. Cheerleaders as a whole would have to strike, and somehow prevent scabs from taking their spots. I’m not sure if that’s feasible.

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    AnastasiaRomanovTess Barker
    8/25/15 4:18pm

    This might be a stupid question, but why are women subjecting themselves to this? What is the plus to this? These women can fight back and insist on a pay raise, but why fight to be a cheerleaders at all? This is like on the level of pageantry to me. It all just seems so outdated and offensive.

    And can I please be taken out of the grays?

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      MariaVonTrappAnastasiaRomanov
      8/25/15 4:57pm

      Honestly it’s because they enjoy it. They’ve probably been dancing their whole lives and dance, like any sport, is a “use it or lose it” talent. It’s no different than getting a weekend job at Hooters, or being in a community theater play. It’s rewarding because they get to do what they want (be paid to dance and be pretty), and they pick up some side cash while they’re in school or whatever. All their lives they’ve been paying for hours and hours a week of dance classes. Now they get the enjoyment, but they’re the ones getting paid. However marginally, it’s still a script-flip compared to all the classes they took growing up.

      I auditioned for a sport dance team once, and I know several people who are or have been on pro teams before. So this is my own rationalization as to why it intrigued me, well as what I’ve seen.

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      VirginialoveshercurvesAnastasiaRomanov
      8/25/15 5:21pm

      There just aren’t a lot of opportunities for women who studied dance to preform their craft. I spent my formative years dancing and then had to basically make the decision in college if I wanted to give it all up because it’s so time consuming to stay in that kind of shape. I did give it up and a part of me died. If you want to be a professional dancer people are going to ogle you. Shit, they even do this with ballerinas.

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    DrewMagarySexDriveTess Barker
    8/25/15 5:36pm

    Doubt this will make it out of the grey, but these complaints are really a disservice to feminism. These women get tons of benefits they likely wouldn’t get or couldn’t afford otherwise. They will likely get taken on expensive photo shoots to tropical destinations. They get access to floor seats for every home and post-season game. Seats that have values over 1K. There are some obvious benefits besides just dancing.

    There are plenty of jobs where people suffer horrible working conditions. However pretending this is anywhere close to the problems that those in the NYC nail salon have is beyond reason. Do an expose if you want on what they have to go through, but spare me the article about the plight of the cheerleader who doesn’t get paid a living wage and needs to unionize.

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      Gwyneth P. is a reincarnated chicken nuggetDrewMagarySexDrive
      8/25/15 6:27pm

      Oh good, they get to watch games up close. That makes it #worthit.

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      DrewMagarySexDriveGwyneth P. is a reincarnated chicken nugget
      8/26/15 4:43pm

      Well considering the large number of women who pay big money each game (hundreds of dollars) I bet you would find tons of people who would do it for free. to pretend there isn’t any value in getting to see the game when other are paying a ton is unrealistic.

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