An article posted Wednesday in The Times Union in New York state prompted me to write this article due to the issue at hand which is women in mixed martial arts.
New York state has been on a constant loop of legislation dealing with the (and I cannot believe I am saying this being 2014) legalization of the sport of Mixed Martial Arts. There has been many arguments on why the state of New York has not lifted the ban on mixed martial arts, and now they have come up with the most disgusting reason why MMA should continue to not be legal in the state which is that MMA is steeped in misogynist culture. Which could not be more from the truth!
I have been a fan of Mixed Martial Arts since I was 13 years old and after seeing my first women’s fight on what was then EliteXC on Showtime I realized that women in MMA are as Forrest Gump once said “like peas and carrots.” The traditional role of women in any society has always been the second banana in a world dominated by their male counterpart, well in the mid 90’s a major barrier had been broken through in Japan and America when women got into the newest sport called Mixed Martial Arts.
When you think of 2 women squaring off you think of two white trash women who are angry because one of them is hitting or screwing the others male or female partner. Well as we all know now women in the world of Mixed Martial Arts are a far cry from the women you will see at your local watering hole on a Saturday night at 1 a.m. The women of MMA are the toughest most in shape female athletes in the world today, more so than female distance runners, track stars, and any other female athlete that does not require fighting or grappling.
Along with the evidence in this article and others you have to look at the women of Mixed Martial Arts around the world from The UFC Womens’ Bantam Weight Champion “Rowdy” Ronda Rousey to Gina Carano, these women along with the female Japanese fighting stars women in Mixed Martial Arts are the strongest willed and independent females of the species.
We were taught as children Martial Arts were supposed to help build peoples confidence and self-esteem, so why are politicians saying this stuff to bring down that notion? As I close this article I will say that I prefer women’s MMA compared to any other sport because I know I will be excited and interested in the fighters and their back stories.
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