Sports Edition I: Softball
What's the deal with the "softball lesbian" stereotype? What if you couldn't play?
In the next three parts, I’ll be looking at stories from women who found community, love, and political activation through three different sports: softball, rugby, and martial arts.
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Lynda Chen holds up the newspaper article featuring her plaque from August 1999.
In 1999, Lynda Chen won a plaque for playing in 100 consecutive softball games.
But actually, as she told me, the real number was closer to something like 160.
“It meant more than 10 years of perfect attendance,” she said, laughing with pride.
Chen started playing softball in 1987. She was already involved in Ana Crusis, a woman’s choir that was predominantly lesbian, but softball was an introduction to an even “greater pool” of people. In the recreational C-team alone, she estimates, there were around 250–300 people.
Practice was 4 times a week—Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Sunday—at Belmont Plateau in Fairmount Park. One season would consist of 18–20 games. After practice and games, people would hang out at bars like Sneakers (which sponsored some teams). Chen’s team, though, wasn’t really a “drinking team.” What she remembers is the nearby pizza joint.
The softball leagues were run by SisterSpace. Many people I interviewed made some reference to this large, feminine world of softball. Whether they were there for sport, pleasure, or both, it’s clear that games at Belmont Plateau were an essential part of the social ecosystem.
You didn’t even have to be that good in order to have fun—Suzi Nash, who identified herself to me as unathletic, did stats for a while but did end up joining a team. “I thought I would be the mascot or cheerleader, and they made me the catcher, which is really ridiculous,” she remembered.
In order to make it as easy as possible for the pitcher, Nash would joke and tell her to aim for her crotch. When the team made it to the championship round, she even drew a giant pink arrow pointing directly to it.
They won.