I too agree that this team doesn’t need to be suspended but needs an overhaul. New outfits that are cute and fun WHILE ALSO covering their bodies, and someone who knows actual choreography to lead them. In this mess of a dance, I saw some girls slipping and one kept stopping to pull those shorts down. They were also out of sync. Dance should be fluid, consistent and have some kind of meaning to it. All this was was booty-shaking.

And I’ll be 28 this year and feel there should be some kind of standards and moral compass to follow. I agree with the strict, hands-on parenting of the past than the loose “I don’t care” parenting of today.

Great post as always.

Yes, the girls on the cheerleader team shouldn’t be let completely off the hook. But it amazes how many adults are far more willing to attack the symptom (raunchy cheerleader routines) instead of the cause (negligent parenting, hypersexualized culture, etc.).

I guess confronting the cause would require REAL courage. Thank you for being among the courageous.

On a related note, check out “Rites of passage,” a blog post about a study on how entertainment bigwigs try to turn all innocent girls into sluts in record time:

http://thepoint.breakpoint.org/2009/01/rites-of-passag.html

We have a fight on our hands and must direct our fire at the right targets.

@Gina — great post. I agree. Those girls didn’t pick up those dances on their own someone taught them. And yes, we have failed to protect them. They did something wrong. We agree but they shouldn’t be treated like hardened criminals. No one should be calling them out of their names. They just need to change the style and come back.

I would love to see the average grades and the high school drop out rates of that particular school system.

I’m sure the crowd was full of their classmates and recent alumni. Most of the people didn’t look like parental figures, but I could be wrong. Since they were suspended and ClayCo has proven its ineptness over and over again, it may be necessary to involve the State Superintendent of Schools.

ClayCo is the epitome of last place finishes AND the place where the school board is a wretched mess. I am not sure that talking to any one at the county level is going to be effective.

Although Kathy Cox may not be of any great help (under her watch GA schools have gone from 50th in the nation to 48th), I’m sure she’d love to have one more reason for the state to take over ClayCo Schools. Here’s her nfo:

Kathy Cox
State Superintendent
of Schools
2066 Twin Towers East
205 Jesse Hill Jr. Drive SE
Atlanta, GA 30334
(404) 656-2800 (voice)
(404) 651-8737 (Fax)
state.superintendent@doe.k12.ga.us

@GINA – this post was on point! When I first saw this video I was disgusted at these girls. Then it dawned on me that this really occured during a SCHOOL EVENT! Where were the teachers? Where were the PARENTS? These poor girls are being railroaded, yet people are silent about the ones who are supposed to be showing them the right way!

We don’t need Obama to save us from ourselves. We can save our own selves!

These young women are very creative and talented – they shouldn’t be attacked like that ESPECIALLY by a sista like yourself who claims to be an advocate for young African American women!!!!

My response:

Oh lord have mercy. I read Gina’s post and she DID NOT attack these girls. There’s nothing attacking these girls in her post. She is simply pointing out that their behavior is inappropriate and it is inappropriate and if someone over 40 years old doesn’t realize that we are in worst shape than I suspected. BTW, I’m in my 30’s and so is Gina ( I suspect) so it’s not old folks attacking young folks, that’s just silly. Anyway, I agree with another poster who said the girls need dance lessons. Maybe you can invest in some dance lessons for these girls, since you think they are so creative and talented. Actions speak louder than words. I will be preparing my care package this week.

These young women are CHEERLEADERS – and, if you’ve been to a college or pro sports event lately, that style is popular now.

Yes, it is sexualized – but then again, it’s dance and everything about dance is sexual.

Why do you have a problem with that?

For that matter, why do the medieval idiots who run that school district have a problem with it?

You can bet all the men on that local school board have been to a strip club at least once – so who are they fooling with their moralistic hypocrisy.

Beyond that , it really sickens me when I see folks my age or older (I’m 40) attacking our youth and putting out all that “back in the day our kids had ‘home training’” nonsense!

“Back in the day” we had Jim Crow, back of the bus, Blacks can’t vote, KKK lynch mob rule – there was nothing wonderful about any of that, and I am sick and tired of older folks in our community glorifying that era!

TODAY is the good old days of Black America (we have the presidency now, in case you didn’t notice!)

Black youth have it hard enough being dumped on by White America – we don’t need to join in!!!

In the so called “good old days” child abuse went unpunished in our community because White social workers and cops didn’t give a damn about us – African American children got inadequate education, poor public services and subpar health care.

Glorifying that horrible period in our race and this country’s history is just dishonest – and does a real disservice to our race!

These young women are very creative and talented – they shouldn’t be attacked like that ESPECIALLY by a sista like yourself who claims to be an advocate for young African American women!!!!