Why MLB's New Hazing Policy Is a Sign of Respect, Not Political Correctness Gone Amok

Last week, Major League Baseball took a major step forward in respecting their female fans by banning the practice of hazing rookies by dressing them up like women. Pictures from these "rites of passage" have been very popular and widely shared on social media because men dressing like women is somehow still considered by many to be a consistently funny trope (see also: Mrs. Doubtfire, Ace Ventura, the old "Bearded Lady" circus act). The truth is, the costumes these rookies wore, like former Oakland A's closer Huston Street dressed as a schoolgirl in 2005 or the New York Mets this past September dressed as characters from the movie A League of their Own, were often offensive caricatures of what men idealize in women and especially made a mockery of transgender women.

After MLB announced the new policy, many current and former ballplayers expressed their disappointment with the league's decision. Street, who now plays for the Angels, wrote in an op-ed for the Associated Press, "We weren't making fun of people that actually dress that way, we were dressed up in uncomfortable clothes, as a contrast of macho dudes dressed in too tight fitting or too revealing clothes for our body type. Anyone looking at the exercise from a lens of humor would see the contrast for what it is and wouldn't be offended." What he's describing is indeed a theory for why humans find certain things funny, called incongruity theory. As the psychologist and author Richard Wiseman has written, "The idea is that we laugh at things that surprise us because they seem out of place. It's funny when clowns wear outrageously large shoes, people have especially big noses or politicians tell the truth… In the same way, many jokes are funny because they involve ideas that run against our expectations."

But what Street and others seem to miss is that for many women incongruence with what society expects is their daily reality. Many trans women have body types similar to these players that, in a dress, people laugh at—or worse. In fact, so do many cis women, and in particular cis women of color; just look at the grief that Serena Williams or Michelle Obama get for their body types, in particular an overlapping of racism, transphobia, and sexism that has been termed transmisogynoir. These "jokes" perpetuate because society thinks women who don't fit a stereotypically feminine mold or appearance are worthy of ridicule. The players think the joke is the incongruence. Instead, the joke is the oversized boobs on an athletic body. The joke is the facial stubble and unshaven legs. The joke becomes a reinforcement of misogynistic gender expectations for women.

Sometimes, these practices can make fun of serious, real world problems like transphobic travel security. "When the Expos existed," the New York Times reported, "National League teams liked to time their hazing events with their exit from Montreal, forcing the rookies to wear their costumes in public through customs." When trans women have so much trouble getting through the TSA or are even arrested going through customs in nations that are inherently hostile to trans people, what does it say that MLB players have turned that experience into a joke? Former Red Sox player Kevin Youkilis tweeted, "Seriously?! Had to wear a Hooters outfit going through customs in Toronto and wore it proudly (because) I was in the Show." (He has since deleted the tweet.) Kevin may have been proud to be in the show, but traveling for trans people is a legitimate nightmare. One person's laugh is another person's horror story.

Those opposed to the new rule have called it another case of political correctness gone too far. Giants broadcaster Mike Krukow, who played in the majors from 1976 to 1989, was one such opposing voice, saying last Tuesday, "I think it's ridiculous… A lot of these kids come up out of the minor leagues having been there four or five years, they get to the big leagues and they cannot wait to put a dress on. They've heard about this, they want to be a part of it, it's a tradition… It links them with other generations, it's a great relationship between a veteran and a rookie." It might be a great tradition but it is one that is carried on myopically. Let's not forget that the tradition started with rookies carrying the veteran's bags in the airport and it has now grown and morphed into this huge spectacle.

Krukow continued, "But I do know this: When we're on the plane and it's rookie day and these guys are putting these things on, it's a big hit. So I don't know who got offended by this or who wrote a bad letter, but I just think that Major League Baseball getting involved with it is a joke."

It may be a big hit for him and the other players, but in recent years, thanks to social media in particular, the audience for this ritual had expanded to include not just members of the locker room but fans of all ages, genders, sexualities, and backgrounds. The growth of social media has accelerated the attempts at shock value. The hazing tradition has grown into a competition at who can post the most outrageous pictures and videos that will get the most clicks, the most likes, and the most laughs. But what effect does it have on a female fan to see people pointing and laughing at and retweeting pictures of a caricature of themselves? What would a young trans girl who thinks she's alone in the world feel to see a world famous baseball player don a dress with several days worth of stubble and watch the country laugh at the joke?

What Krukow and others miss is that the players aren't the joke here. The players are idolized athletes making more money from playing a game than most of us won't see in our lifetimes. The joke is on the rest of us. It's the women who can't help but have upper lip hair, it's the woman who had to have her breasts removed, it's the woman who dresses conservatively for religious reasons, it's the trans girl who struggles to overcome the effects that male puberty had on her body. When everybody laughs at us, we tend to write letters to those who should know better. After all it's human nature to protect ourselves.

It's about time that teams recognized that this "tradition" is doing real damage to segments of their own fan bases. The league has decided to be the adult in the room after watching these images spread throughout social media and realizing that it isn't something that befits their organization or the image they want to project.

Major League Baseball may have taken away part of a tradition for their players—most costumes are still allowed, after all—but they've also taken a stand for respecting the women who love the game. It may come off as political correctness run amok, but I remember when political correctness meant having basic respect for those who are different from you. The world is not made for men to make constant fun of.

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