Give 'em hell, Lucy Small!
Longboarding competitions are usually not the times nor places to witness explosive fireworks but that commonality was radically challenged, this past weekend, when the very talented Lucy Small called out both event organizers and sponsors from the stage for paying the women half as much as the men.
Small, who won the Curly Mal Jam Pro, dubbed Australia’s premier one-day long boarding surfing event, was handed the microphone, along with an oversized cheque and beautiful glass trophy and wasted no time getting right to it (slide three).
“Hello… I finally won something,” she began, sun shimmering overhead. “Thank you so much for having us, super stoked to be here. I just wanted to point out, thank you so much to the sponsors for all the money for the event, but I would say it’s a bittersweet victory knowing that our surfing is worth less than half as much as the men’s prize money.”
Groans rose up from the audience but, undeterred, she continued.
“It costs the same amount to fly here, accommodation costs the same, and our surfing is worth half as much so maybe we can think about that for next time.”
The groans turned to half-hearted applause but, in my opinion, should have turned into wound up arms pelting those event organizers and sponsors with rotten fruit.
It is unbelievable, in this day and age, that the prize money would be different for the men and women. I understand how, if there are less women, the purse might be smaller, but not the amount paid winners.
And how does a statement asking equal money for equal work cause groans?
Has being a father of daughters blurred my vision?
Caused me to miss some key element where damned male longboarders deserve more a priori?
Nonsense, all of it, and I would go so far to argue that the women should get twice as much as the men in the world of professional longboarding.
Three times as much, even, as it is far more graceful, compelling, a spectacle.
Prove me wrong.
And bravo, Lucy Small.
Give ’em hell.
Give ’em all hell.