Eight-Wheeled Freedom by D. D. Miller

Author:D. D. Miller
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Wolsak and Wynn Publishers Ltd
Published: 2016-12-10T16:00:00+00:00

In her extensive work on the issue, E. Nicole Melton has identified ways that positive change can be made in sport. Specifically, she cites three key elements for creating change; namely, that to inspire change women need to

Create a new definition of femininity.

Use social media to disseminate that image.

Form support groups with athlete allies (other athletes, coaches, officials, etc.). (26)

Although Melton’s increasing and increasingly important body of scholarly work has primarily occurred since 2010, she has yet to train her critical eye on roller derby. If she were to do so, she would see that since its birth, women’s flat track roller derby has made it its singular purpose to live those three criteria that she has laid out.

Although inspired by the riot grrrls of the ’90s, and tipping their helmets to some of banked track roller derby’s more flamboyant stars like Ann Calvello, the twenty-first century roller derby skaters have created their own definition of what a woman is and how a woman should be. While it is up to leagues to create their own gender policies – some, such as the one in Madison, Wisconsin, are incredibly inclusive5 – the WFTDA itself has made strides to be more inclusive, or – more accurately – less exclusive. In a “Statement About Gender” press release from November 2015, the association’s official stance was laid out: “An individual who identifies as a trans woman, intersex woman, and/or gender expansive may skate with a WFTDA charter team if women’s flat track roller derby is the version and composition of roller derby with which they most closely identify” (“WFTDA Broadens Protections for Athlete Gender Identity”). Although always comparatively progressive, the WFTDA’s first gender policy from 2011 had become somewhat dated. Initially, the organization required skaters to identify as a woman and even went as far as to demand a note from a doctor confirming that “the athlete’s sex hormones are within the medically acceptable range for a female” (“WFTDA Adopts Gender Policy”). The most abrupt shift in policy outlined in the 2015 declaration was in the decision to not require skaters to identify as women, concluding that “the gender identity of any and all WFTDA participants is considered confidential and private” (“WFTDA Broadens Protections . . .”).

Interestingly enough, the WFTDA-affiliated Men’s Roller Derby Association (MRDA) was ahead of the WFTDA in this regard, and has never had a specific gender policy, but instead has a non-discrimination policy that states it doesn’t discriminate based on gender or gender expression, among other things. The policy also states that the MRDA “does not and will not set minimum standards of masculinity for its membership or interfere with the privacy of its members” (“MRDA Non-Discrimination Policy”). This means, essentially, that anyone along the gender spectrum can play men’s roller derby.

Secondly, having evolved exclusively in the social media era, flat track roller derby has always relied on social media to spread. The “by the skater; for the skater” mantra at the heart of flat track roller derby has

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