In my mind golf courses are one of the most "classed" places in society. Not only do golf clubs tend to cater to the upper class middle to old age, white men but the etiquette involved in it has its roots in victorian age wealthy house manners.
The first reason i thought of a golf course for this blog is an article i caught out of the corner of my eye while at a clubhouse today with my dad. The article was addressing a clubs fight to try and stay men only. Women felt that it was gender inequality and they should be entitled to become members. At first i wondered why the club would ever fight having a larger customer base but after reading up a bit on the internet I realised that it wasn't really about money or anything it was about tradition. When golfing first came on the scene it was a sport for the ultra rich englishmen. It was expensive and the standards to become part of many clubs were set to high for most middle or lower class citizens. For instance one website said golf should stay what it was meant to be and they claimed that golf stands for Gentlemen Only Ladies Forbidden.
The picture I chose to use was of a group of people protesting A golf club's Male only policy. The golf club is resisting the change because it feels that it is there duty to preserve the game of "golf". I think that this has wider implications then just this sport but can be reflected on almost every major change in society we have had. Many moderate whites in in the 50's and 60's werent necessarily against blacks having equal rights or segregation ending but they were afraid of their power base disappearing. People resist change because even progressive change in the right direction can make people nervous. I feel that this really ties into many of the photos we looked at in class. Many of those pictures were made to almost make the white people look more civalised or even dominant. At the time many whites probably felt that and some do today but alot has changed and it has been in both big protests and little signs of defiance like this group going to a local club. In order for our society to become less "classed" people need to protest like in this picture. Although change will be resisted by many people it will come if everyone is diligent. I think that this picture really showed a the desire for people to make society more equal.
http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=gentlemen+only+ladies+forbidden&view=detail&id=9B7645CA568B87E6A83D1B9F60303E10B14C7D08&first=0&FORM=IDFRIR
ReplyDeleteHere is the link sorry it wouldntgo on the post for some reason.
Great observation; upholding tradition against a society that is quickly changing and becoming more and more liberal. I understand and can empathize with these clubs, organizations, and more when it comes to trying to preserve traditions that have been set for a matter of reasons and how hurtful it can be to see traditions slowly becoming more liberal.
ReplyDeleteBut clubs of racial and gender classification are an act of ignorance. To simply say "men" only is only the cover up. Once you get pass the entire idea of "gender," meaning WOMEN and MEN are different things, these things can start to become a matter of RACE and MASCULINITY. Like most Republicans, the idea of MEN are generally WHITE MEN. DYER makes the same argument as saying that WHITE is natural, WHITE in the soul. Only WHITE MEN are the true men. I doubt that they would consider an Asian MAN, a men in comparison to the WHITENESS of men. Or even lesser of an Black man to be considered in the club as a MAN nevertheless a white man. These are all interconnected that in a matter of gender is only the beginning, race and class are all important in defining a man in a white american society.