Press Action ::: Cheering for Kills

Friday, February 20, 2004

Cheering for Kills

By Abu Spinoza

In an incredible letter to the Washington Post, David Hoe thanks the Washington Redskins cheerleaders for visiting the troops in Fallujah, Iraq, on Valentine’s Day and salutes these “first ladies of football” for their daytime helicopter ride over Fallujah to visit with him and his fellow soldiers who are fighting on the front lines of this war. It does not seem to bother Hoe, a lifelong Redskins fan and the son of a 25-year season-ticket holder, that there is something rather troublesome in flying young women (some of whom appear to be merely teenagers) to entertain soldiers engaged in a terribly bloody occupation of another country.

Sexism and violence is so deeply ingrained in contemporary society that that titillation provided by cheerleaders is regarded by the rulers and accepted by the compliant population as a necessary ingredient and incentive for the Anglo-American foot soldiers of invasion and occupation. Is the service provided by cheerleaders to today’s occupation soldiers any different than that extracted from comfort women to Japanese soldiers?

Perhaps there is no commercial sex, only tantalizing glimpses of flesh and robust gymnastics and aerobatics, but that’s not the issue: The essence of the service is no different. Well, there is one key difference. Whereas comfort women were forced into servitude and prostitution, today’s cheerleaders, abetting and aiding occupiers of distant countries, arguably do so willing for the sake of personal enrichment and career advancement with no regard for the people whose land is being bombed, plundered, invaded, and occupied.

Professor Marc Herold’s* photo compilations [Excel file] of scenes [Excel file] from Afghanistan show the vulgarity of the recreational activities of such entertainers who appear in occupied lands. The grotesque entertainment provided by cheerleaders makes an absolute mockery of any and every conception of beauty, love, kindness, romance, sympathy for others, equality, freedom, liberty, respect, and fraternity.

*Special thanks to Professor Marc Herold for sharing links to photos and articles about U.S. entertainers performing in Iraq and Afghanistan for this article.

Abu Spinoza is a columnist for Press Action.

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