Outsports has a nice piece on Jenny Fulle, the first girl who was officially allowed to play Little League Baseball in 1974. It recounts the history of her case against LLB and the many obstacles she encountered on a local and national level.
When I was doing research last year on how Ms. magazine covered women's sports, I came across Fulle's story more than once. This, along with the help she received from the her local chapter of the National Organization of Women (NOW), is a good example of how mainstream or liberal feminism did see the importance of, and worked for, girls' access to sport and other physical activities--something that is not often discussed or even considered in historical accounts of this period.
And what's Fulle been up since fighting her way onto the diamond? Fighting her way to the top in another male-dominated business--movie production. She's an executive VP and executive producer for Sony Pictures Imageworks. And she's coaching her son's Little League team.
3 comments:
I just was referred to your blog by a friend and have been enjoying it. As I read this entry I just wanted to ad that I too played Little League baseball, in Charlottesville, VA IN 1974. It wasn't easy in spite of the fact that I was big for my age and a good player, reliable hitter. There were plenty of fights and one pitcher from an opposing team pitched basically threw the ball at me, crackign my femur.
sorry about forgetting the spell check
Thanks for reading, Rob.
Crazy about the unabashed violence against a child who just wants to play a sport. A colleague of mine, when she started playing Little League in the 70s, was subject to taunts from the other team's mothers! I think someone should start collecting the stories of women who played Little League in the early days. They are all so interesting (mostly in that sad, doesn't-it-make-you-crazy-to-think-about-how-misogynist-sports-are kind of way).
[No worries about the spell check. I won't ban your comments for a few typos :)]
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