美国国家公共电台 NPR An NFL Cheerleader Brings Her Firing Over An Instagram Photo To The EEOC

 

LULU GARCIA-NAVARRO, HOST:

Bailey Davis was a Saintsation, a cheerleader for the New Orleans Saints football team - that is until she posted a photo of herself in a one-piece outfit¹ on her private Instagram account. The Saints fired her for breaking rules that prohibit cheerleaders on the team from appearing nude², seminude or in lingerie. And that's not all she was prohibited from doing. Cheerleaders for the Saints have to leave parties or restaurants if players are there, and they can't have players follow them on social media. The company says it's to stop them from being preyed³ on by players, but the men don't have the same obligations. Davis filed a complaint with the Equal Opportunity Employment Commission against both the NFL and the Saints. And she joins us now to talk about it. Hello.

BAILEY DAVIS: Hey, guys.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: So what were you wearing, exactly?

DAVIS: I was wearing a lace bodysuit. I'd actually worn it before with jeans as an outfit, so I can see where they would think it was lingerie. But I was not posing for a lingerie photo shoot, even though that's not the actual issue.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: Right. Tell us what, in your view, the actual issue is.

DAVIS: So the players have the freedom to post whatever they want to on social media. They can promote themselves. But we can't post anything on our social media about being a Saintsation. We can't have it in our profile picture. We can't use our last name for media. We can't promote ourselves. But the players don't have the same restrictions⁴.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: And so your suit is basically alleging⁵ discrimination?

DAVIS: Right, that we have different rules and we are held to different standards than the football players.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: Is it sexist, or is it just different rules for different categories of employees? You know, ultimately, football and cheerleading are gendered.

DAVIS: The football players have a different job than us, and I completely understand that. But as far as being in the same place as a player, and me being the one that has to be careful about where I'm at and watch out for them, that's so discriminating⁶. And also the fact that if I post something that - I'm in a swimsuit or in a body suit, it's seen as something sexual. But the players can post shirtless in their underwear and it's just seen as athletic⁷.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: Let me understand this correctly. So let's say you walk into a restaurant, and there's a player from the Saints there. He doesn't have to leave the restaurant, but you would.

DAVIS: Right. If I'm there first, I would still have to leave. And that's not just Saints players. That's any NFL team or NBA. So anybody from the Pelicans⁸ could walk in, and I would have to leave, or I would be fired.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: You would have to recognize a whole lot of players.

DAVIS: Right, I mean, thousands.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: May I ask you why you became a cheerleader? You know, most cheerleaders, as we now understand, get minimum wage. Many squads⁹ have had to get only that through lawsuits¹⁰. But you are athletes, as well, as you just mentioned. When you joined, did these rules seem fair?

DAVIS: I kind of wanted to be a Saintsation as a stepping stone into my dance career because I knew there was a four-year cap on it. But by my third year - and I knew I had to start looking for another job in the dance world - I wanted to start promoting myself more, and there was no rule that I couldn't have my page public for people to find me. And so then when they said, well, you need to make your page private, so these players can't find you, that's when I realized, OK. You're making it harder for people to find me and for me to find another job as a dancer because social media is how we market ourselves nowadays.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: What has been the response of your fellow teammates to your suit?

DAVIS: My fellow teammates have not been supportive to me. I've been told that I'm putting the team in a negative light. And then a lot of the girls have been posting stuff on social media saying that, you know, the organization is great and offers so many opportunities, which is true. And, I mean, I was the same way when I was in the organization. We're told so many times, there's a hundred other girls that would do your job for free. You're just taught to keep your mouth shut, or they would replace you. And so I think when you're in the organization, you don't realize that there's nothing OK about this.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: Bailey Davis, former Saintsation, thank you so very much.

DAVIS: Thank y'all.

1 outfit   

n.（为特殊用途的）全套装备，全套服装

参考例句：

• Jenney bought a new outfit for her daughter's wedding.珍妮为参加女儿的婚礼买了一套新装。
• His father bought a ski outfit for him on his birthday.他父亲在他生日那天给他买了一套滑雪用具。

2 nude   

adj.裸体的；n.裸体者，裸体艺术品

参考例句：

• It's a painting of the Duchess of Alba in the nude.这是一幅阿尔巴公爵夫人的裸体肖像画。
• She doesn't like nude swimming.她不喜欢裸泳。

3 preyed   

v.掠食( prey的过去式和过去分词 )；掠食；折磨；（人）靠欺诈为生

参考例句：

• Remorse preyed upon his mind. 悔恨使他内心痛苦。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• He had been unwise and it preyed on his conscience. 他做得不太明智，这一直让他良心不安。 来自辞典例句

4 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

5 alleging   

断言，宣称，辩解( allege的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• His reputation was blemished by a newspaper article alleging he'd evaded his taxes. 由于报上一篇文章声称他曾逃税，他的名誉受到损害。
• This our Peeress declined as unnecessary, alleging that her cousin Thornhill's recommendation would be sufficient. 那位贵人不肯，还说不必，只要有她老表唐希尔保荐就够了。

6 discriminating   

a.有辨别能力的

参考例句：

• Due caution should be exercised in discriminating between the two. 在区别这两者时应该相当谨慎。
• Many businesses are accused of discriminating against women. 许多企业被控有歧视妇女的做法。

7 athletic   

adj.擅长运动的，强健的；活跃的，体格健壮的

参考例句：

• This area has been marked off for athletic practice.这块地方被划出来供体育训练之用。
• He is an athletic star.他是一个运动明星。

8 pelicans   

n.鹈鹕( pelican的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Kurt watched the Pelicans fire their jets and scorch the grass. 库尔特看着鹈鹕运兵船点火，它们的喷焰把草烧焦。 来自互联网
• The Pelican Feeding Officers present an educational talk while feeding the pelicans. 那个正在喂鹈鹕的工作人员会边喂鹈鹕边给它上一节教育课。 来自互联网

9 squads   

n.（军队中的）班( squad的名词复数 )；（暗杀）小组；体育运动的运动（代表）队；（对付某类犯罪活动的）警察队伍

参考例句：

• Anti-riot squads were called out to deal with the situation. 防暴队奉命出动以对付这一局势。 来自辞典例句
• Three squads constitute a platoon. 三个班组成一个排。 来自辞典例句

10 lawsuits   

n.诉讼( lawsuit的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Lawsuits involving property rights and farming and grazing rights increased markedly. 涉及财产权，耕作与放牧权的诉讼案件显著地增加。 来自辞典例句
• I've lost and won more lawsuits than any man in England. 全英国的人算我官司打得最多，赢的也多，输的也多。 来自辞典例句