Everyone has seen your typical cheerleading expose. The one on TV where the 'journalist' picks the loudest, most colorful coach, athlete, or cheer mom and puts them on display for the world to see like a zoo animal. The clips are strategically edited to make our sport to look as bad as possible.
We've all been frustrated by it. We want people to respect what we do and not assume that cheerleading has no depth, value or big-picture importance to society.
I've learned so much in recent years about how to handle myself in interviews or when dealing with people whose number one priority isn't the legitimacy of all star cheerleading. Rather than take the defensive and wait for an attack, let's take the OFFENSIVE, an idea of mine that some of my coworkers at Varsity inspired me with their new campaign "American Needs Cheerleaders." Periodic blogs on their site (http://americaneedscheerleaders.com) celebrate the positive contributions of cheerleaders OFF the competition floor and football field.
Also, the USASF created the Chairman's Cup. The Chairman's Cup is a contest where all star programs report on a philanthropic initiative that their program was responsible for executing. The required submission to enter the contest includes evidence of some sort of local media coverage. The USASF's goal is to drown the internet with POSITIVE stories associated with cheerleading. Unfortunately, the top stories that pop up online when you search for cheerleading include 'injury,' inappropriate choreography,' and 'felony.' The top phrases should be 'athlete,' community service,' and 'positive impact.'
Think about cheerleaders you know and an example of a great attribute that isn't necessarily related to winning first place, getting a Worlds Bid, or cheerleading at all. Let's drown our social media world with your positive stories about your athletes. Did your team fundraise $500 for the local Children's Hospital? Did one of your athletes get named Valedictorian of her high school class?
In the comment boxes below, post your story. If you are logged into Facebook while filling out the comments, your story will be posted both here and on your FB wall. Varsity All Star will select some of the best posts and repost them on our website and Facebook page. But more importantly, we will take a step towards cleaning up media's positioning of all star cheerlading as anything less than THE sport for your athletic women (and men).
Make sure you include 'cheerleader' when identifying your athletes. We want to make it very clear to anyone reading through your posts that the incredible individuals and teams being highlighted are CHEERLEADERS.
