After the 2018 Winter Olympics, even more sexual harassment accusations have been placed since charges were filed against Dr. Larry Nassar, who was the American Gymnastics team doctor. In Hollywood, accusations have been flying left and right about sexual assault with actors and crew members. 2017 and 2018 have become the years of bringing up the past assaults from victims that have not felt safe enough to share before. In many cases like these with abuse, the judges or lawyers ask the victim what they were wearing and how provocative it was. Not even the Olympic uniforms are safe and critics are once again blaming the outfits of the Young Girls, rather than the men who performed the actions.
Aly Raisman on victim blaming
I was recently asked if gymnasts should continue wearing leotards. Leotards r not the problem. The problem is the many pedophiles out there & the adults who enable them. By saying clothing is part of the issue, u are victim shaming/implying survivors should feel it's their fault.
— Alexandra Raisman (@Aly_Raisman) March 25, 2018
Alexandra "Aly" Raisman is an American Gymnast, two-time Olympic gold medal winner and a victim of sexual abuse at the hands of Nassar. Since 1982, over 290 coaches and officials have been accused of sexual misconduct, and this is only on the American teams. The Olympics has been a breeding ground for these accusations, including other athletes as well.
The Olympic village has even gone so far as to add a Sexual Assault Center for physical and mental health care for abused athletes.
This is not the first time Raisman has spoken out about women's rights either. In this year's Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue she posed nude with words about respecting women written on her. In her Instagram post of the photo, she wrote: "The time where women are taught to be ashamed of their bodies is OVER.
The female body is beautiful and we should all be proud of who we are, inside and out."
Leotards and other uniforms
The outfits used in gymnastics and dance were created to be lightweight and easy to move around in, as the sport requires. If the athletes were to wear more clothes, the movements would not be as precise and there could even be instances of overheating.
In the same way leotards are used for women, speedos are used for men in swimming sports. If we were to ban leotards, the only correct way to not have double standards is to ban men's tight-fitting options as well. The clothes aren't the problem here. The problem is the media and our society sexualizing athletes for their uniforms. The main point of feminism and respecting others is to let people wear what they want no matter how sexual you find it. These athletes are mostly young girls and should not be seen in a sexual manner anyway.
