This totally needed to be said! I argued with a guy yesterday about calling Sir Lewis 'lulu'. He called it Lewis' "Media Name". WTF?! Someone else chimed in and tried to say 'lulu' was meant in the way of something extraordinary. Nice try, Bubba, but it's about intention and yours sucks.
It's gotten better over time. Responsible admins will no longer tolerate names like 'Maxi-Pad'. But somehow, 'lulu' is still overlooked when, essentially, 'Maxi-Pad' and 'lulu' are siblings. The point is the same: women are inferior to men therefore feminizing a man's name makes him inferior. Not sexist at all, right mate?
But in terms of Lewis specifically... I had to stop going to any site that mentioned Lewis' name because they attracted haters like bears to honey. It was literally impossible to enjoy a chat with fellow fans! At least we seem to have (mostly) moved beyond the time when the pages of both Max and Lewis were filled by trolls with empty FB profiles. You know the type: John X, no friends, no followers, no info, joined last week, HATES Sir Lewis. Spends his time seeking out Hamilton/Max pages for the sole purpose of posting vile sh&t. What a way to live, eh?
I think it takes a degree of courage to come out and talk about the mental realities of high-performance sports. No one wants to hear their heros are just as fragile as the rest of us, but it's important for us all to understand that being human isn't always a fun ride. Money, status, sporting success...none of it can be enjoyed if the stress of it all becomes so overwhelming it can rob you of the joy of doing it at all. So, respect and kudos to those with the guts to talk about it: Hamilton, Norris, Biles, Osaka and anyone else I haven't recalled. Y'all are the real heroes!
Well said! I often think about how brave it is of Lewis to keep speaking about topics when he knows how things can be received when *he* specifically talks about it!
And you’re completely right regarding the overlooking of “Lulu” versus “Maxi-Pad”, so many connotations - none of them good, and no one willing to be honest about what they’re actually inferring when they call him that.
I also think it ties back to when “men” like Bernie Ecclestone had homophobic things to say about Lewis’ fashion choices at the track - its two sides of the same coin and only encourages a specific audience to continue with their sexism/homophobia.
But we know Lewis, still he rises! Same with all the other athletes you mentioned, they continue to do what role models do!
This totally needed to be said! I argued with a guy yesterday about calling Sir Lewis 'lulu'. He called it Lewis' "Media Name". WTF?! Someone else chimed in and tried to say 'lulu' was meant in the way of something extraordinary. Nice try, Bubba, but it's about intention and yours sucks.
It's gotten better over time. Responsible admins will no longer tolerate names like 'Maxi-Pad'. But somehow, 'lulu' is still overlooked when, essentially, 'Maxi-Pad' and 'lulu' are siblings. The point is the same: women are inferior to men therefore feminizing a man's name makes him inferior. Not sexist at all, right mate?
But in terms of Lewis specifically... I had to stop going to any site that mentioned Lewis' name because they attracted haters like bears to honey. It was literally impossible to enjoy a chat with fellow fans! At least we seem to have (mostly) moved beyond the time when the pages of both Max and Lewis were filled by trolls with empty FB profiles. You know the type: John X, no friends, no followers, no info, joined last week, HATES Sir Lewis. Spends his time seeking out Hamilton/Max pages for the sole purpose of posting vile sh&t. What a way to live, eh?
I think it takes a degree of courage to come out and talk about the mental realities of high-performance sports. No one wants to hear their heros are just as fragile as the rest of us, but it's important for us all to understand that being human isn't always a fun ride. Money, status, sporting success...none of it can be enjoyed if the stress of it all becomes so overwhelming it can rob you of the joy of doing it at all. So, respect and kudos to those with the guts to talk about it: Hamilton, Norris, Biles, Osaka and anyone else I haven't recalled. Y'all are the real heroes!
Well said! I often think about how brave it is of Lewis to keep speaking about topics when he knows how things can be received when *he* specifically talks about it!
And you’re completely right regarding the overlooking of “Lulu” versus “Maxi-Pad”, so many connotations - none of them good, and no one willing to be honest about what they’re actually inferring when they call him that.
I also think it ties back to when “men” like Bernie Ecclestone had homophobic things to say about Lewis’ fashion choices at the track - its two sides of the same coin and only encourages a specific audience to continue with their sexism/homophobia.
But we know Lewis, still he rises! Same with all the other athletes you mentioned, they continue to do what role models do!
Bernie... Yeah, he's a piece of work. I still remember one comment of his.. He said, "Women should all wear white, like kichen appliances". Yikes!