Black women and sports

Paper Topic-

The lack of black women in executive positions of professional sport organizations

Overview-

This paper will compare the relationship of gender and race to sport and hiring. The paper will examine why black women are the least represented group in sport management. Minorities make up a small percentage of executives in professional sport organizations.

From the organizational perspective, are professional sport organizations against hiring minorities?  Do professional sport organizations view sports management as a white male club only for white men with a few minor exceptions? The NFL has taken steps to increase minority hiring by hiring more black men but the hiring of women has not increased. With so many athletes being black men one would assume that many of the executives will also be black men but if black men are not holding these positions what does it say about black women and how hard it will be for black women to receive an executive position in a white male dominated sport organization?

From the perspective of black women, are black women intimidated to work in the male dominated field of sports? Could the lack of black women in sports be due to black women being afraid that the sports industry is competitive and choose not to give it a try? Or could it be a lack of interest? Are women interested in working in sports? Are women not applying for these sport positions and therefore not being hired into these companies.

Outline

I.                   Introduction- 

Black women hold the least amount of executive positions in professional sport organizations. Is it a coincidence that white men are the top executives in sports management followed by black men, white women and black women last? This paper aim is to examine black women in sports from two perspectives the organizations perspective and also the perspective of black females.

II.                Sports and hiring

1.      The history of hiring in sports

a.       NBA

b.      NFL

c.       MLB

d.      WNBA

e.       College Sports

III.             Men and sports

1.      Black men and the meaning of sports

2.      Black men and the meaning of sport compared to white men and the meaning of sport.

3.     

4.      Black men as professional athletes

5.      Black men as executives in sport

6.      Male attitudes toward women in sport

IV.             Women and sports

1.      Women and their relationship to sports

2.      White women relationship to sports compared to black women relationship to sports.

3.       Women relationship to sport compared to male relationships to sport.

4.      Female attitudes toward working in sport.

V.                The barriers of pursuing a career in sports for minorities

1.      White men make up the majority

a.       People want to feel comfortable at work not like an outcast.

b.      Feeling out of place and intimidated

2.      The representation of women in sports

a.       The women represented in sports are always beautiful.

b.      Women are not respected in sports.

c.       Men dominate sports.

VI.             The interest black women have in pursuing a career in sports

a.       Interest

b.      Opportunity

c.       Discouragements

VII.          Sport organization diversity improvements/ lack of improvements

a.       NBA

b.      NFL

c.       MLB

d.      WNBA

e.       College Sports

VIII.       Conclusion-

My theory is that the lack of women in sport is due to a combination of lack of interest in pursuing a career in sport, lack of opportunity and intimidation.  Based on research this paper will examine if this theory is true or false.

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