Nancy Marie Lopez is a former professional golfer from the United States of America. Nancy Lopez might be considered a symbol of America’s fake racial equality and a figure coopted in the Latino-Latina patriotism and social action plan. Lopez’s portrayal as a wholesome, beautiful, heterosexual, top golfer set her apart from traditional perceptions of Mexican women and positioned her as a well-educated middle-class American lady. In this scenario, she could appeal to a wide range of people and provide the LPGA with a much-needed boost in fan support. Nancy Lopez, according to the text, differs from other Latinas in several ways. Lopez, for instance, graduated from high school, unlike nearly half of all Latinas in the United States. Furthermore, unlike many Latina women who are forced to drop out of college owing to financial restraints or family obligations, Lopez departed to pursue a career in sports. The coverage depicts her as a person that did her favorite thing, despite the ambiguous views and assessments of the environment.
Comparing the article of Nancy Lopez to the text about Tiffany Chin, it is possible to conclude the presence of specific similarities. Tiffany Chin’s entry into figure skating and the media’s portrayal of her might be seen as the emergence of the Asian female skater on White rinks. Since figure skating has traditionally been seen as a White sport, Chin’s accomplishment paved the way for future Asian American performers. To that aim, the media’s treatment of Chin reveals how the ‘distinctions’ of Asian American female skaters were first recorded, developed, and transmitted in a racially and gendered manner. As in the example of Nancy Lopez, Tiffany Chin was able to build her sports career in ambiguous conditions. Being a representative of the race that was not considered the main for her sport, she provided an opportunity for the next athletes like her to work in a more tolerant community.
Work Cited
Jamieson, Katherine. “Reading Nancy Lopez: Decoding representations of race, class, and sexuality.” Sociology of Sport Journal, vol. 15, 1998, pp. 343-358.