Would you let a girl play on a boy's sports team? It’s a tough question that has been posed to many parents.
In 2015, according to USA Football, approximately 25,000 girls played youth football. Alivia LaMontage is one of those girls, playing for the Cleveland Bombers. Ten-year-old Alivia knows that most girls don’t play tackle football, but she is okay with going against the norm.
“I have always been very athletic and my mom has always supported me in what I wanted to do,” Alivia said. “I have always known that I was different and so have all my friends. "
With a coaching staff that emphasizes acceptance, the Cleveland Bombers have embraced Alivia despite the fact that she is the only girl who regularly plays for the team.
“They respect me,” she said. ”It makes me feel very very proud of where I came from. How it’s usually hard for people to gain respect from all of these kids and stuff.”
Alivia’s mother, Felicia LaMontagne, had some trepidation about letting her daughter play football. Injuries were, and still are, her major concern. Nonetheless, she allows her daughter to suit up.
“I think nowadays society is telling us who we should be and who we shouldn’t be,” Felicia said. “It is important as parents to let our children be who they are and encourage them to be who they are, no matter what that is.”
According to the Women’s Sports Foundation, girls who play on boys sports teams tend to be more resilient. The foundation also notes that prior to puberty, there are no physiological reasons for girls to avoid playing with boys. Even after puberty, there are some women who have the strength and athletic prowess to compete on men’s teams.
By excluding a young girl based solely on gender, children get the message that girls and women don’t belong in areas predominantly occupied by boys and men. Those areas extend far beyond athletic fields. Engineers and CEO’s are examples of lucrative positions more often occupied by men.
While Alivia may not have a full grasp of inequality in our society, she already recognizes playing with boys is hard. Prior to the game, her coach, Cameron Washington, said the entire team is on the lookout for opponents targeting Alivia.
“I kind of prep them for that,” he explained. “They look out for her.”
During the game I attended, Alivia was on the defensive line, blocking when she was double teamed. After she fell to the ground she took a knee to the head, which sidelined her for much of the game.
While it is tough, if not impossible, to tell whether or not Alivia is, on occasion, purposefully targeted, there is the chance that allowing Alivia to suit up exposes her to physical and emotional backlash. Alivia’s determination to continue to play hopefully helps to set an inspiring tone for other girls. But, more importantly, despite the possible adversity, Alivia is happy to partake in a sport that she loves to play.
“She loves football. She loves the Bombers. She loves the team, her coaches. It’s family,” Felicia LaMontagne said.
Instead of telling young girls like Alivia that they can’t follow their heart because girls don’t belong, we need to encourage parents and coaches to teach all to be welcoming. In the meantime, Alivia is learning that her dreams are not limited by her chromosomes.
“I would say don’t let anything or anyone get in front of your way. Just push through everything,” Alivia said emphatically. “I would say all the hard things in football, you need to push through that to get to the top”
Allowing Alivia to play football has had an impact far more meaningful than the final score of any game, because when answering the question of whether or not girls should be allowed to play with boys, you’re not just telling a young girl what and who she can and can’t play - you're also letting her know who and what you believe she can and can’t become.
