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Over at Blazers Edge the author of this blog put up a fanpost suggesting the Blazer Dancers should be disbanded because they are too sexist, and that she finds them too degrading. Here is a quote from her blog. This stirred up quite a hornets nest over there....over 220 comments so far. A surprisingly high number of guys agreed with her. One married guy even commented he felt guilty about being aroused by the dancers.

What do you guys think?

The Blazer Dancers Must Go





I am an avid basketball fan. My favorite team is the Portland Trail Blazers. I have been going to the Memorial Coliseum and Rose Garden since probably before I was even born (cheering in the uterus.. ). One thing I have noticed in the past couple of years, is the disturbingly stripper-like routines and outfits the Blazer "Dancers" wear. Now, I know a lot of these girls have been dancing since children but this isn't an art. They are strutting around, flashing their ass and shaking their tits. The costumes include booty shorts and bras, ref-dresses, and the shiny boots you see above.
As the popularity of the Blazers continues to rise with the team's ascension to greatness once again, so does the fan base become more diverse. The Rose Garden is no longer filled with middle aged men and blog nerds; but young kids, girls, boys, women, men, couples, singles, beer enthusiasts, basketball fans, and crowd loving bandwagoners. It's wonderful. So what exactly is the message these "dancers" portray? It's not a good one…It is obvious that they add sex to what is usually an all male audience. A feature to the ever increasing sensationalized NBA storyline. Men watching a bunch of other men sweat profusely is kind of homoerotic... gotta objectify women to prove their virility. This is degrading and perpetuating debauchery and not something I want to be a part of.
Also, to the parents of the Jr. Blazer Dancers... you are really doing your daughter a disservice. Just to let you know

http://www.wantonintentions.blogspot.com/

I understand where she is coming from.

There is no need for it at an NBA game, especially when parents like to take their children to the game.

If it truly is dancing, it can be done with longer skirts and less revealing tops.

As a female I loathe women like the author of this blog post. Not everything is a degrading act towards women and not everything involving females is some sexist act that requires a feminist getting involved.

Women are not being objectified here on the whole; sure, I bet there a few people out there who are objectifying them but not everyone. How many people in the crowd are going "damn those girls are hot dancers I bet that's the only thing they're good at lololololol FLASH THAT ASS GIRL!!!!"?

This post is more humorous to me because the author, Sophia, is a notorious Batum fan-girl. Infact I am pretty positive she has often commented on how cute he is (please note I have no problem with this as I am sure we are all aware of my love for one LaMarcus Aldridge), and IIRC has called him gorgeous a time or two.

How is that not objectifying men? How many women go to games and comment on how cute or handsome a guy is? Especially in light of the fact that men are usually sweaty (akin to being oiled up) and their muscles all flexed. How often do you find girls (and gay guys; speaking of this her use of needing entertainment that targets more than men does she assume that sports teams have no lesbian fans who also appreciate the dancers?) who aren't really fan of sports for sports but just because a guy is cute/good-looking?

It is just as "objectifying" if a woman does that to a man but feminists often overlook this part in their attempts to ride some universal call of "WOMEN ARE TREATED HORRIBLY STILL THEY ARE FORCED TO BE DANCERS EVEN IN THE FREE WORLD" (please note I am very aware that in several middle-eastern countries women are treated like crap but that is not a feminist issue that is a human rights issue).

These dancers dance because they want to and it is a job 41 days of the year where they get to entertain a large crowd (of yes mostly men and teenage boys). They are free to quit at any time, they are free to disagree with their outfits and suggest changes, and much to the dismay of feminists around the world they are free to like the job they do! Even if they are somewhat scantily clad and offer mindless entertainment.

This is not 'the man' holding down women, this is not an issue that needs to be discussed or rallied around, this is not objectifying women - this is once again a feminist making an issue out of nothing just to make an issue.

Now if you'll excuse me I am going to go look at promo photos of LaMarcus and objectify him.

Edit: Wow go me I totally forgot one big issue I wanted to address at the end of her post.

In addition I loathe feminists (and a lot of activists) even more because a lot of them are very self-righteous. This woman has no right to question the parenting of the Blazers Jr dancers in any way shape or form. The only way they would ever be doing their daughters a disservice is if they taught them that dancing in questionable outfits was all they had to offer in life.

While the dancing for the kids is a bit uh.. too grown up at times it is something the kids want to do and it is innocent fun to them. I highly doubt that these parents are putting it in their heads that this is their purpose in life and that is the only way they'll be considered beautiful, smart, creative, etc.

This woman needs to get a grip.

CB-Blazer wrote:I understand where she is coming from.

There is no need for it at an NBA game, especially when parents like to take their children to the game.

If it truly is dancing, it can be done with longer skirts and less revealing tops.

If the point is....hey, lets tone things down and make it more family oriented. I understand that point of view. But what you said and the way you said it is much different than what she said.....

Men watching a bunch of other men sweat profusely is kind of homoerotic... gotta objectify women to prove their virility. This is degrading and perpetuating debauchery

That just sounds like an angry person on a soapbox.

Looks like TSE finally got a chance to vent.

I didn't even bother reading. I love cheerleaders. Ours aren't very good dancers, though.

That lady can GET BENT for all I care--I <3 me some Ione!

our outfits are actually pretty mild-mannered compared to some of the other teams in the NBA

TSE, + however many you want. Excellent post.

And know that you will never be discriminated around here for your Aldridge fan love.

I understand your point on the feminist crap.

But there just isn't a reason to have that crap at a basketball game. I don't mind having a dance team, but have them be an actual dance team. My wife is a dance instructor and my sister is on her high school dance team. It is much more entertaining to see a well choreographed routine than it is to see a bunch of grown women in skimpy clothing shaking their asses.

If the Rose Garden was a place that was just for adults, I would have no problem with it. Sadly, it is a family venue and those outfits and ass shaking should have no place in it.

As to the younger dancers, I have not seen them. But if they dance/wear the clothes that the older girls do, that is simply disgusting. If dancing is there interest then it will not matter what they wear and how they dance.

The Sebastian Express wrote:As a female

WHOA WHOA WHOA...I missed that part the first time. YOU'RE A CHICK?!?

Did not know that.

I guess I just don't really see a problem with what the adult dancers wear. Yeah they wear some scantily clad stuff but it is nothing worse than you see on prime-time TV or in the movies. Certainly not as bad as a stripper.

For instance look at the new Blazer dancers body-suit. Absolutely right that the bottoms are pretty short and come up to the very top of their thighs - that's just what girls wear these days in terms of their shorts. They wear a lot of really short and tight shorts.

The Blazer dancers are choreographed but to be honest they basically have a time limit of 20 seconds to a minute and a half. Not a lot of time to put out a well thought out and masterful dance routine.

Mostly I'd have no problem if they wore more clothing but again I have no problem with what they wear now. I do have a big problem with self-righteous feminists because I feel they give a lot of women a bad name.

The Emcee wrote:

The Sebastian Express wrote:As a female

WHOA WHOA WHOA...I missed that part the first time. YOU'RE A CHICK?!?

Did not know that.

Most of my friends think I am actually an androgynous robot but in reality I do sport some lady parts.

The Emcee wrote:

The Sebastian Express wrote:As a female

WHOA WHOA WHOA...I missed that part the first time. YOU'RE A CHICK?!?

Did not know that.

Seconded

Guess you learn something new every day.

The Sebastian Express wrote:

The Emcee wrote:

The Sebastian Express wrote:As a female

WHOA WHOA WHOA...I missed that part the first time. YOU'RE A CHICK?!?

Did not know that.

Most of my friends think I am actually an androgynous robot but in reality I do sport some lady parts.

That's awesome. Girls who like sports score major points in my book.

And now that Kyphi retired as a mod you're the only girl I know of on these boards.

The Sebastian Express wrote:I guess I just don't really see a problem with what the adult dancers wear. Yeah they wear some scantily clad stuff but it is nothing worse than you see on prime-time TV or in the movies. Certainly not as bad as a stripper.

For instance look at the new Blazer dancers body-suit. Absolutely right that the bottoms are pretty short and come up to the very top of their thighs - that's just what girls wear these days in terms of their shorts. They wear a lot of really short and tight shorts.

The Blazer dancers are choreographed but to be honest they basically have a time limit of 20 seconds to a minute and a half. Not a lot of time to put out a well thought out and masterful dance routine.

Mostly I'd have no problem if they wore more clothing but again I have no problem with what they wear now. I do have a big problem with self-righteous feminists because I feel they give a lot of women a bad name.

Well, I don't get to make many Blazer games due to the fact I live 4 hours from Portland and in college and when I do make them I use halftime to use the restroom/get soda so I usually can't tell you what they are wearing.

I don't have a problem with the "ref" outfits nor the American flag ones they had on Tuesday but the "school girl" outfit is a bit much.

I agree that they should be allotted more time but it's pretty obivous that one of Portland's goals is to be appealing as a family venue ( Blaze and the games they have during timeouts/halftime) and at a family venue, skimpy outfits have no place.

During half time the Blazer dancers aren't out there for maybe two of the twenty minutes. The rest of the time it is a group activity that entertainment groups sign up for I believe. The two times I went this year the first game (clippers) had a crunk dancing group to celebrate black history month. The second time I went (last Lakers game) I can't even remember what they had but it wasn't the dancers I know that. OH! It was a crazy gymnastics girl who had a bendy high-beam held by two men and she would jump high into the air and do crazy flips. I was pretty certain she was going to break her neck at one point but she didn't.

CB-Blazer wrote:It is much more entertaining to see a well choreographed routine than it is to see a bunch of grown women in skimpy clothing shaking their asses.

Hey, now... speak for yourself!!!

As a guy who doesn't get to goto games very often I've definately noted that since I was 16 or so(a lil over 10 years ago now) the outfits have clearly gotten smaller and smaller over time. I've also noted that the "Dancers" don't really do anything except entertain during dead time nowadays, and I seem to remember them going up into the stands a bit more when I was younger to act more as actual cheerleader types(which is really what they should be doing most of the time anyways imo.

Personally my two biggest problems with the Blazer dancers is that they're really not particularly good entertainment to begin with and that I don't really feel like they add to the enviornment when they spend more time changing their outfits(sometimes as many as 4-6 times a game) than they do on the court or in the stands helping the fans to cheer on their team. Frankly if you get them into a more traditional type cheer setting(as in they go and try to get fans involved rather than just running on the court during every time for some 20 second dance routine that no one really watches, even the horny guys the whiny author of that initial blog wants to trash on ever so quietly) it'd be better for all involved. It would also prevent idiotic feminists from trying to say their job is entirely shaking their ass, and has an actual goal to it - in this case to help the home team win the freakin game.

That said, I do love some of their outfits - the ref dresses, and the santa outfits on xmas are both great for instance... I just wish they had the Blazers Dancers do something other than do cheesy dance routines for 30 seconds at a time and instead used to them to get the crowd more involved during dead time as opposed to effectively distracting fans for 30 seconds at a time with scantily clad women from the oh so horrible "time out dead time!!!!"



Wow, I just admitted there's a scenario where I'd rather see scantily clad women do something more productive... what's wrong with me today?

Sweet Suzy wrote:I am an avid basketball fan.

O RLY? Well, riddle me this, then, Dick Vitale... name me at least 10 other NBA teams (including both the city and the name of the team). Also, just out of curiosity, who won the NCAA men's and women's basketball championships a few weeks ago?

Sweet Suzy wrote:My favorite team is the Portland Trail Blazers.

Kick-ass, so is mine! <puppy dogs and gum drops>

Sweet Suzy wrote:I have been going to the Memorial Coliseum and Rose Garden since probably before I was even born (cheering in the uterus.. ).

Again, so have I... get to the friggin' point already, lady!

Sweet Suzy wrote:One thing I have noticed in the past couple of years, is the disturbingly stripper-like routines and outfits the Blazer "Dancers" wear.

Me too... aren't they awesome!? <crickets>

Sweet Suzy wrote:Now, I know a lot of these girls have been dancing since children but this isn't an art.

Who died and made you an art critic?

Sweet Suzy wrote:They are strutting around, flashing their ass and shaking their tits.

I know... isn't America AWESOME!?

Sweet Suzy wrote:The costumes include booty shorts and bras, ref-dresses, and the shiny boots you see above.

I prefer the hot pants (a.k.a. clam diggers) with the shiny boots. Such a nice combination it'd make an onion cry! In fact, Mortal Kombat and Street Fighter don't even have a combination that can touch that ****... combined!

Sweet Suzy wrote:As the popularity of the Blazers continues to rise with the team's ascension to greatness once again, so does the fan base become more diverse.

Whoa, whoa, WHOA... can you please put down the on-line dictionary!? Oh, and at the Nostradamus quatrain. Keep up the good work and you may make quite a name for yourself in another 400+ years!

Sweet Suzy wrote:The Rose Garden is no longer filled with middle aged men and blog nerds; but young kids, girls, boys, women, men, couples, singles, beer enthusiasts, basketball fans, and crowd loving bandwagoners.

No way... say it ain't so! Men, women, children... and basketball fans? What the hell are they doing there, anyways!?

Sweet Suzy wrote:It's wonderful.

Actually, I kinda hate the "bandwagoners"--they're douche-bags.

Sweet Suzy wrote:So what exactly is the message these "dancers" portray?

That they're more fleet of foot than you are, for one, Twinkle Toes!

Sweet Suzy wrote:It's not a good one…

That's flat-out B.S.!

Sweet Suzy wrote:It is obvious that they add sex to what is usually an all male audience.

Now just you wait a cotton-pickin' second... weren't you just saying how the crowd "is no longer filled with middle aged men and blog nerds; but young kids, girls, boys, women, men, couples, singles, beer enthusiasts, basketball fans, and crowd loving bandwagoners," or am I mistaken?

Oh, and why not "add sex?" "SEX ROOLZ, SWEET SUZY DROOLZ!11!!1!1"

Sweet Suzy wrote:A feature to the ever increasing sensationalized NBA storyline.

*single tear*

Seriously, just one.

Sweet Suzy wrote:Men watching a bunch of other men sweat profusely is kind of homoerotic... gotta objectify women to prove their virility.

Hey--you hear that!? That's your insecurity alarm going off. Does that mean that when you watch a women's basketball game that you're then a full-on bull-dyke? No, of course not--just like most guys that are into sports aren't pole-smokers. I mean, yeah, I'm sure there are some regular Richard Simmons' out there that like professional male sports, but, I mean, COME ON... ser-i-ous-ly!

And, again, please put down the god damn on-line dictionary--I already asked you nicely, earlier!

Sweet Suzy wrote:This is degrading and perpetuating debauchery and not something I want to be a part of.

I hate it when people "perpetuate douche-baggery!" I did, however, come across a funny-ass web-site that was dedicated to it a while back, though. It's called HotChickswithDoucheBags.com--check it out!

Sweet Suzy wrote:Also, to the parents of the Jr. Blazer Dancers... you are really doing your daughter a disservice.

Well, don't just sit there and type... get out there and start spankin' 'em and takin' their (respective) birthday's away!

Sweet Suzy wrote:Just to let you know

Go back to Pennsylvania, Quaker!