Beisbol's Cultural Patrimony

Editor's Note: From time to time, this blog will feature the well-known feminist scholar, Katrina De Las Hondas, as guest contributor. De Las Hondas is a transitioning (we're not sure in which direction) mixed-race individual living in the greater Los Angeles area. She deleted her Twitter account after being forced to flee her home. Her contributions are called Snatches of Feminist Discourse.

Katrina De Las Hondas is a pseudonym -ed.

Professional sports is a pervasive and pernicious source of patriarchal dominance in society. It is best studied using the intersectional model of institutional bias, comprising race, class, gender and cultural subjugation.

Most people are aware that sports teams employ nicknames to promote and reinforce their identity and confederation of support. Many times, team names appropriate the characteristics of indigenous peoples that have been subjugated by Europeans, such as Seminoles, Braves, and Redskins.

Well, one baseball team has taken this offensive practice one step further. The Fresno Grizzlies baseball team has changed their name to the Fresno Tacos. I'm not even kidding.

Pitcher Luis Cruz shows off what the players will be wearing for the August 6th Taco Truck Throwdown 5 home game. pic.twitter.com/ryj1Dyp1Sj

— Fresno Grizzlies (@FresnoGrizzlies) July 21, 2015

And they are using a Latino player, Luis Cruz, to advertise the name change. I guess even some Latinos have a false consciousness.

Why not just call the players the Fresno Burritos, or the Chimichangas, or just save everybody a lot of trouble and call them the Fresno Beaners?

The Fresno Tacos are a minor league baseball team, and often toil for low wages, and without union representation. This type of team is known colloquially as a "farm" team. Let me tell you about someone who liberated farm workers long ago. His name was Cesar Chavez!

It's bad enough that male sports players are paid so much more money than female players. The typical female athlete often has to supplement their income by taking off season employment as high school gym teachers.

Not only that, but there is a lot of sexist vernacular used in sports, especially baseball. I first realized this when I was once called a "switch-hitter." Everybody's always talking about "scoring," and keeping detailed statistics about how many times they "scored." Know who else keeps score? The benign arbiters of social justice!