Show Female Silhouettes At Woodbury Sports Facility: Petition

WOODBURY, MN — During a recent trip to the Healtheast Sports Center in Woodbury for soccer practice, Robin Hennessy says her 8-year-old daughter looked at the silhouette images of "all-male athletes" displayed on the building and asked, "why aren't there any girls?"

Hennessy and more than 2,000 other petitioners are wondering the same thing. Now they're asking local lawmakers to take action and add female silhouettes to the display. The Woodbury City Council is scheduled to discuss the topic at its Wednesday meeting.

"Thousands of girls and women utilize this publicly owned facility, and deserve equal representation; anything less sends the wrong message to our girls and our community," Hennessy writes on the petition.

"Please help us convey to our elected representatives and local business leaders that honoring and recognizing girls and women in sports is an important priority."

"Symbols matter. We all deserve better. Please fix this," added petitioner Peter Eckman.

Critics of the petition say it's impossible to tell the gender of the silhouettes and call it a non-issue. But Robin's husband Joe Hennessy, director of the girls' Woodbury United Lacrosse club, says there are key differences that indicate the silhouettes' gender, such as the size of the baseball bat.

"I don’t know if this bias is conscious or unconscious, but the fact that it was recognized by an 8-year-old illustrates why it is a problem," Robin told the Pioneer Press.

It's not yet clear how expensive new silhouettes would be for the city-owned building. Woodbury spokesman Jason Egerstrom told the newspaper it would be "a technical and financial challenge" to make the change.

Image via Shutterstock