Soccer Activist Megan Rapinoe Calls on Male Stars to Ramp Up Activism, Help Fight Against 'Racism,' 'Sexism'

Nick Kangadis | December 4, 2019
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Why would a “strong, independent” woman need a man for anything? I mean, that’s what we’re constantly beaten over the head with. If you ask the attention-seeking co-captain of the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team (USWNT) Megan Rapinoe, she wants leading men in her sport to begin ramping up their activism game, because — racism or sexism or something.

ESPN reported that Rapinoe spoke with yearly awards ceremony organizers France Football after winning the women’s Ballon d’Or, the highest yearly individual award in soccer, and called on male superstars Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Zlatan Ibrahimovic to get more active in their activism.

Here’s what Rapinoe reportedly said:

I want to shout: 'Cristiano, Lionel, Zlatan, help me! These big stars do not engage in anything when there are so many problems in men's football.

Do they fear losing everything? They believe that, but it is not true. Who will erase Messi or Ronaldo from world football history for a statement against racism or sexism?

What Rapinoe doesn’t understand, and probably one of the reasons she’s such a polarizing figure, is that those guys are soccer players before they’re activists. They use their platform to be some of the best in their sport. While they are more than entitled to espouse whatever opinion suits their fancies, they don’t because they understand that part of the reason they make as much money as they do is because they publicly stick to soccer.

You can be an activist as well, but when you make that aspect of yourself who are completely, more people recognize you for your words — that not everyone agrees with, by the way — and not the platform that allowed you to speak in the first place.

Not only that, but Rapinoe assumes that everyone should be an activist. Some people simply don't want to get into those types of conversation publicly, so to almost shame people into becoming activists will just garner her the opposite of the results she's looking for. Rapinoe needs to understand and respect that what she does isn't for everyone. 

And if Rapinoe is such a strong, independent woman, why does she need men to say something in order to make a bigger impact than she ever could?

Need further proof that Rapinoe simply doesn’t get it? Just take a look at why she said she won the award for best female soccer player of 2019.

“This Ballon d'Or rewards both," Rapinoe said, referring to both her athletic performance and activism. "On the one hand, I am a good player. On the other, my activity away from the pitch brings me support as people understand I am acting to find solutions to our society's problems. The idea is to empower others to speak louder.”

What Rapinoe also doesn’t understand is that she could win the Ballon d’Or without the activism, but she absolutely couldn’t win that award without her athletic performance. Just ask Messi. He’s won it six times.

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