Play equipment is a feminist issue

[artisanparsnips]

I've posted the message below on chat, but would really like your perspective on this as well. I'm starting to talk to people who might be interested in campaigning on this, so would love feedback.

Quick question, what outdoor play facilities are there in your local area for older children - skate park, graffiti wall, pump track? And how much are they used by girls? And is there anything else that the girls use?

I'm asking because my eyes have been totally opened by the Caroline Criado Perez book, where she points out, almost incidentally, that almost all facilities for older/teenage children are used mostly by boys. I looked at what was on offer in my town and lo, it was all the above, and a football/basketball pitch. And I watched all summer and they were all used by 80% boys at best.

So I really want to know how usual/unusual this is, and any other thoughts that you have.

And yes, I have name changed because anyone who knows me will recognise this issue straight away....

I think the problem is that if there isn't somebody there to mediate and make sure that a facility is shared, a bigger stronger group will dominate... and physically teenage boys are bigger and stronger than teenage girls.

Gosh. I'm horrified that I have never realised this. You are correct of course op.

You are totally on the button OP.

If we are spending money on facilities that boys use mostly we need to understand why what we are providing isn’t doing it for the girls! So much of this is down to design and use of space and the feeling of safety and not intimidation. We have a BMX track nearby and it is really amazing- a brilliant thing for youth locally and used by kids from 7+ to adult. A very small number of feisty girls use it - and indeed do amazingly and compete internationally. But it’s such a small percentage.

As a woman something I love about going to the skate park (other than skating) is that just by being there, I'm sending a message to girls that this is a space for them too. And a message to boys that women are cool. I so, so often see little girls passing by the skate park stop to look at me. So I go over to them, have a chat, do a trick for them if they ask, suggest that they can do this too.

I chat to the boys, let them see that this cool, fun thing they are doing isn't just their domain. I don't make any point to them other just being there. I think it's so insanely important to be that example to both boys and girls. And to their parents, because I honestly think that parents are so often the worst culprits when it comes to gendering the activities their kids do.

Just catching up with this thread. One thing I'm trying to do with the young girls in my life is encourage them to do physical activities where they can compete with (or outcompete) the boys. Namely things like gymnastics, rock climbing, dance, ice skating, trampolining.

The reason being that I think it really grows their confidence. I remember vividly the last time I played football in the park. I was about 13-14, getting constantly outrun and brutally tackled by the other boys. It totally knocked my confidence and I stopped playing altogether.

I now do rock climbing pretty seriously and it's fantastic to go to the climbing gym and see the women absolutely schooling the men there. I love watching women's football and rugby but we also need to champion the sports where women are not always second tier to the men.

On that note, it's worth making sure that kids know that when it comes to endurance, the difference between men and women narrows massively. There is possibly* only a 13 minute difference in the world marathon records between the fastest man and woman. Considering that in many sports, the best women's competitors are at a similar level to any decent young adult man, that's pretty amazing. Any man running a marathon in 2 and a quarter hours is considered extremely athletic and the best women can do that too. It's not an equal ability but it's actually very close. And once you pass into ultra endurance the few women in the field can outperform the men by quite a lot at the elite level. The women's records can be very significantly better than the men's.

And while obviously you can't get children or teens to practice endurance/ultra endurance unless you want to potentially kill them. But for both girls and boys to grow up knowing that there are fields of sport where women excel, is really, really important.

*The fastest woman's marathon time is still awaiting ratification.

This is all great, and it's so fab to hear of ways in which women are challenging this. But I do think altering the built environment is crucial too.

@alittleprivacy We need some of this round here. However I've been watching our local pump track all summer (I walk past it quite often) and some of the language/obscenity felt like a kind of territorial act, a way of discouraging girls.

I'm sure there is some literature about this ... I remember reading it. It made the point that not only do most girls not use these facilities but that they appeal only to a small subset of boys too - in other words, a lot of money goes into facilities that serve only a small number of young people overall. Then they say that they have 'provided for' young people when they really haven't.

As a girl, I went roller skating and ice-skating on rinks, not parks. I don't think I could ever have managed the parks/ramps. I didn't have that level of skill or the physique. I was quite happy to go round and round to music I liked. There were also tennis courts and a netball court we had access to.

I didn't have that level of skill or the physique.

Anyone skilled enough to roller skate competently can ramp skate. It’s just our own mental blocks that stop us. I started as a 40 year old woman and once I worked up the courage to roll down my first tiny ramp I was hooked. It’s actually pretty easy compared to roller dance/figure skating. Check out women like IndyJammaJones for encouraging tutorials or Chicks in Bowls for empowerment and an amazing growing culture. Ramp roller skating is exploding in popularity and it’s very female dominated.

Anyone skilled enough to roller skate competently can ramp skate. It’s just our own mental blocks that stop us

Nope. Complete lack of will and desire on my part. I like my bones unbroken and my teeth uncracked. I don't want to put the will, time and energy in. I just liked going round and round.

Of course everyone doesn’t have to want to do it but if you can skate competently you do have the skill level and the physique to ramp skate. It’s an extreme sport and it’s not for everyone for all sorts of reasons but it’s not something that requires super skill levels or a great physique and people shouldn’t feel put off trying it if they are interested but not super fit.

Came across this on twitter and it reminded me of this thread- a Girlguide comment on how two thirds of the 11-21 year old females they asked said they couldn't find outdoor sports facilities they felt safe using. The replies are what people who think girls are humans and not gendervalidators would say.

It has a link to an article about young folks not exercising enough.
twitter.com/Girlguiding/status/1197866572292997122

The exclusion of girls and women from outside spaces and physical activity starts at a young age.

For example a girl in my son's reception class (so age four or five) gets told every morning by her mum that she can't run around on the grass with the boys because she will get her feet wet, because girls' school shoes tend to be flimsy strappy things that don't cover the foot. So my son and his boy friends have fun and physical activity while she is excluded. Makes me so sad for her.

I only have sons and see this kind of thing over and over again. Boys encouraged to get outside, be physically active, get muddy while girls are restricted even at very young ages.

This is worth a watch - how Barcelona is addressing such issues -

www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-50269778/what-would-a-city-designed-by-women-be-like

(Apologies if already covered)

Oh you have it already - didn't see when I first scrolled sorry