Cartoon: Donald Ashwood/ The Campus
A male high school wrestler recently refused to wrestle a female in the Iowa State High School wrestling tournament.
“As a matter of conscience and my faith, I do not believe it is appropriate for a boy to engage a girl in this manner,” said Joel Northrup, the sophomore wrestler, in a statement to media.
Female high school wrestling teams in the U.S. are sparse, so when wrestlers join the sport, they acknowledge they will likely compete against someone of the opposite sex.
“When you step onto the mat, you’re not a guy or a girl, you’re a wrestler,” Junior Wrestler Brittany Delgado said.
Unfortunately, when Northrup chose not to fight the female wrestler, he appeared sexist in the eyes of many media outlets that have framed the story. With women’s wrestling at our university, it is important to look at the bigger picture.
Most of our wrestlers come from high schools that don’t have a women’s wrestling program, and they often competed against male wrestlers.
Delgado attended high school in South Carolina where there are no women’s high school leagues, and can attest to this.
“I had to wrestle on the guy’s team at 215 and heavy weight,” she said. “I was clearly undersized.
“But I assume all risks when I step onto the mat.”
Though it’s easy to judge and point fingers at this being an instance of gender inequality, either way it’s a lose-lose situation for the male.
If Northrup had wrestled Cassy Herkelman and won, many people may have judged him for fighting a girl because some deem it to be “morally wrong.” Had Herkelman won, Northrup could face becoming a laughing stock for losing to a girl.
Northrup knew that choosing not to wrestle Herkelman would result in his losing the match.
He had a right to refuse not to wrestle a female, as it is a part of his religious conviction, but his decision has been viciously attacked by other media outlets.
This editorial originally appeared in the Feb. 23 issue of The Campus newspaper. Editorials are written by the Student Publications Editorial Board.
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