A high school in Wisconsin will no longer give out awards to cheerleaders based on physical attributes, including recognition for having the largest backside and biggest breasts, district officials said.
An annual cheerleading banquet held for at least the past five years at Tremper High School in Kenosha doled out awards ranging from “most improved” to “hardest worker,” with at least 100 of the girls’ relatives, friends and members of the Kenosha Unified School District in attendance.
But according to the New York Times, a yearlong investigation by the American Civil Liberties Union uncovered that awards included the “Big Booty Judy” for having the largest buttocks and a “Big Boobie” for the cheerleader with the biggest breasts. According to the school’s principal, those were given among other gag awards at the banquets and were “meant to be funny,”
Another accolade called the “String Bean Award” was also given to the skinniest cheerleader, according to a letter sent Tuesday to district officials demanding that the cheerleading coaches be disciplined and that “robust, mandatory anti-harassment” training be required for all district employees.
“We urge KUSD to release written guidelines prohibiting school officials from commenting on students’ physical appearances or making other remarks about their bodies or sexuality,” according to the letter, which adds that the ACLU will continue to explore all legal remedies if the steps are not taken.
“Gender stereotypes and objectification of women and girls start from an early age and follow girls and women throughout their entire lives,” Asma Kadri-Keeler, an attorney for the ACLU of Wisconsin, told the Racine Journal Times in a statement. “Now more than ever, it is important for schools — and all institutions — to take steps to prevent them from taking root. … The ACLU and ACLU of Wisconsin will continue to press KUSD to respond appropriately to these incidents and to reform and enforce its policies so that all students are treated equally, regardless of gender.”
ACLU officials said they obtained emails sent by Tremper Principal Steve Knecht to cheer coaches that indicated at least four complaints were received in April 2018 regarding the awards. But Knecht reported he could find no evidence of wrongdoing by the coaches and failed to provide an explanation for the finding to one parent, according to the ACLU’s letter.
“When the parent insisted Mr. Knecht had missed something, he responded that the awards ‘were meant to be funny’ and the coaches were ‘just joking around,’” the letter reads.
District officials later met with the school’s unidentified lead cheer coach and directed her to write apology letters to the students who received the gag awards. The coach was also told to submit her resignation by June, although she declined to do so before being told she’d be welcomed back as a co-coach alongside her replacement. But the woman has continued to “directly coach” the cheerleaders during the 2018-19 school year, according to the ACLU.
Tanya Ruder, chief communications officer for the school district, confirmed to the Journal Times that body-shaming awards will no longer be given out to the female athletes. She declined to comment on the employment status of Tremper’s cheerleading coach.
“A clear expectation has been set that awards of this nature are not acceptable and are not to be given at Tremper cheerleading banquets going forward,” Ruder told the newspaper. “As for the investigation, we are not at liberty to share personnel matters.”