You Can't Make this stuff up: Armless, legless girl and wants to cheerlead

Cheerleading is an exclusive, self-perpetuating, self-promoting social club closely affiliated with athletics.

 

No, you don't have to see it as a sport. But you do have to see it for what it is: participation in a group that requires a certain set of skills and abilities.

People are excluded from certain extra curricular activities because they do not possess the skills or abilities to be a part of a particular activity.

 

Exactly, except you can take "almost" out of your last sentence.

We complain all the time about parents who want the entire system to change because their child did not get what he or she wants. The only difference here is that the child is more sympathetic. That doesn't mean the parent is right.

 

Again, we have to go all the way back to "What is cheerleading?" before trying to explain why we'd exclude someone from it.

 

Cheerleading in this particular school has a set of standards. Other students met those standards better than she did.

This also gets back to the "slippery slope" argument. You may not take cheerleading seriously (neither do I), but the students who participate and their parents do. If you change the standard for this girl, what about the one who is a little slow or not very pretty? You don't think the parents of every girl who comes home crying because she didn't make the squad won't ask for some special accommodation?

More importantly, if you don't think those demands for special treatment won't spill over into sports and other activities, you are kidding yourself.

 

At it's most basic level, it does require arms and legs. Take the sport and competition aspect out of it and it still requires legs and arms. There is not really a single cheer you can do that does not require the use of at least one set of appendages.

And to comment on what OOP said, I have seen plenty of large and not very pretty cheerleaders. And I agree that you do not have to take it seriously, but it is serious to those participating. Just like the chess club is important to those participating. As is the math club and the competitions they attend. Just because certain people do not see these activities as sports or because you don't take them seriously does not mean that absolutely anyone should be allowed to join. Those joining still have to have certain skill sets to participate.

 

if there really was a roster 'limit,' first off, how would a parent of the girls who didn't 'make the cut' know that their daughter was the next in line? i'm also still having a problem getting my head around the notion that there is/was a roster limit of some sort. if there is/was, would the school really be so inflexible as to not allow one extra girl on the squad?

but... if there is indeed a strict, no exceptions limit to the squad and my daughter was among those who were left off to keep this girl? i'd stfu, expain to my daughter that there are some times in life when you put aside your own hopes for a greater good and to count her blessings.

seriously, how any parent of a healthy child could stomp and scream and cry, 'FOUL!!' over this truly escapes me. try using this situation as a teaching tool to you child about priorities and kindness and graciousness.

AARRGGHH!!

 

Yes, there are. And the parent of the girl who didn't make the team should have focused on that rather than trying to get the rules changed for her daughter.

 

i'm not kidding myself. i'd say, 'bring it on, m'fers!' seriously, i've lost track amidst all these hypotheticals being tossed about. did this squad have a cut-and-dried roster limit, no exceptions? if so, did parents cry 'FOUL!' 'cause their little girl didn't beat out the fully-fit girls but now have to watch this armless/legless girl shout, 'GO, TEAM, GO?!'

My mortification has no bounds.

 

ya lost me, oop. which girl/daughter are you referencing here?

 

Still waiting for someone besides Point of Order to weigh in on the question "What is cheerleading?" All these sharp opinions, it seems easy enough to define.

 

Excellent. Thanks.