South African runner Caster Semenya forced to take gender test to prove she's a woman. Some say this is racist/sexist. What do you think?
According to the Daily Mail, in Semenya's home country of South Africa, fans are leaving comments on websites, saying:
"She looks manly, of course, but is she the only athlete who looks manly? I don't think so... Would they have tested her if she wasn't African?"
"Our Caster is a woman, these European people cannot handle the fact that an African can actually be a champion in something and will always try to bring us down."
What do you think of the gender verification testing that Caster Semenya must undergo?
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/othersports/article-1207661/World-athletics-sensation-Claims-emerge-South-Africas-female-800m-hope-Caster-Semenya-really-MAN.html
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/athletics/8210471.stm
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http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6188775.stm
Indian athlete fails gender test
A top Indian woman athlete who won a silver medal at a recent regional championship has failed a gender test, officials say.
Santhi Soundararajan, who took the silver in the women's 800m race at the Asian Games in Doha, has been stripped of her medal, reports say.
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Also, a Dutch athlete (Foekje Dillema) was tested back in 1950, and failed.
She was expelled. It was recently discovered she has two X chromosomes to each Y.
http://www.24oranges.nl/tag/gender/
So no, this is not racism, nor sexism, it is one of those standard procedures to keep the competition equal. Only women are allowed to compete in the women competitions.
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However, considering the chances of having both characteristics in today's genetic mixes is a relevant issue. Not one easily decided. But in this specific case (if in fact that is her situation), personal choice (hers) is the deciding factor in my opinion.
But if I was born male and want to be female (achieved by surgery and/or hormone therapy) that's an issue for the courts to decide.
If it was up to me, my personal choice doesn't change nature. I can jump up and down all I want and call myself a woman but they still won't let me into the woman's restroom without a hassle. Which may involve a test to prove it.
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Track & Field if a beautiful sport, but it has gotten tainted with all these types of allegations, and that's really unfortunate as it could be the really one true sport, where pure athletes excelled and made us feel good about being human. Not only does it cause us to stop and admire physical achievement but it also reunites all the races and countries in peaceful events.
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By definition, I think it is definitely sexist (discrimination based on gender), but I don't think that was your point. I think your question was more directed at the motives of the people involved (i.e., were those involved going after Semenya because of how she looked?).
Since we don't have insight into the thoughts of the individuals the best we can do is to look at the facts. In this case, the IAAF said they were investigating because she improved personal bests by significant margins.
If these results were the impetus for some standard drug tests which then led to questions of gender then I think the motive feels like it is more in the right frame. However, if these results were just an excuse to test out rumors (that reports suggest have surrounded Semenya for years), then the motive seems suspect.
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BUT
I have not seen her vagina so therefore I cannot really say
until I get some hardcore proof I guess I will be on the wall about this
and for the issue about the racism
look, racism is defined as what?
saying that you are superior to someone based off of racial differences, right?
or maybe it's geographical adaptations and not 'race' as we think of it.
of course troglodytes, the cave man and woman had particular facial features that the African, original human being, did and does not, but that's only because of differences amongst the hueman race.
human beings nowadays come in differenct sizes, shapes and a whole bunch of assorted colors and flavors so that's irrelevant at the moment
besides she is a runner and most female runners tend to be more "masculine" or muscular which is usually a characteristic of a man. hard facial features she most probably acquired not because of her "race" but because of her conditioning.
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No, that approach is fine for civil rights and the like, but it is not appropriate for athletic contests. It would be extremely unfair for the other athletes.
It should not be about how she identifies herself. She is sitting on an international platform, and if there are questions about her gender identity, clarity should be sought. stop hiding behind racial cards or any sort of discrimination, lets face the facts fellow Africans, be dispassionate and accept the truth that lies beyond physical examinations!!