Feminine negotiations and patriarchal bargains: Contradictory resistance in women's flat track roller derby

Abstract

Women in contact sports must negotiate hegemonic gender norms and expectations encoded with sexism and homophobia. Previous research has not fully taken into account the way roller derby athletes resist notions of hegemonic femininity while simultaneously reinforcing gendered hierarchies. Using ethnographic data and 15 in-depth, semi-structured interviews, I seek to make sense of the complex gender negotiations in one roller derby league. I find that skaters offer not only unique resistance by defying gendered expectations of femininity but also risk reaffirming gender hierarchies. Skaters also negotiate and embody characteristics of masculinity and alternative femininities to conform to expectations of sporting legitimacy. This study indicates that, even within progressive spaces, hegemonic expectations of masculinity and femininity can hinder resistance efforts by imposing the competing goals of women's empowerment and masculine norms of athleticism.