Approaching the one-year anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, America has returned to doing what it does best: focusing on things that don’t deserve so much attention.
This year’s U.S. Open is full of skimpy skirts, low-cut midriffs and for a brief second, Anna Kournikova.
But this year, all eyes are on No. 1 seed Serena Williams.
No one’s talking about her sizzling game, however, or even her alleged stalker from Germany, who is currently being held at Riker’s Island on $3,000 bond.
People can’t stop talking about her skintight black outfit, which the press has dubbed “the catsuit.”
Pete Sampras went as far as to declare that if he had a daughter, she would never wear such an outfit.
How dare Serena wear an outfit that clings to her body, so that no access fabric can get in her way while she plays.Why is there a big deal about what Serena’s wearing?
For the past few years, women in tennis have worn well-placed pieces of cloth that left little to the imagination.
In this same tournament, No. 37 seed Kournikova sported a tank top with cuts on both sides
In contrast, the only skin Serena is showing is on her arms and legs.
So what’s the big difference?
Is it because she’s better built than the scrawny blondes with their barely-there skirts?
She’s not sloppy in appearance, and there’s not an ounce of fat on her body.
She’s winning her matches faster than the length of the average college class – and with a stalker on her heels at that. But of course, none of that is important.
Black women are often portrayed negatively in the media – unfeminine boors on one end, video hoes on the other.
So when women like the Williams sisters come about – intelligent, classy and beautiful, one can almost hear the media scratching their heads in confusion.
One journalist commented how impressed he was that the Williams’ sisters were reading a newspaper in their spare time.
John McEnroe had to eat his words after winner Serena and runner-up Venus gave their congratulatory speeches in French following the French Open.
Now the press seems to be baffled that a black woman – and a dark-skinned black at that – can be seen as a sex symbol.
And rather than compliment Serena’s flawless skin, beautiful smile, impeccable fashion sense and well-shaped body, they choose to mock her for wearing black spandex.
The saddest thing?
Unless someone is actually following No. 2 seeded (and far more clothed) Venus, no one would know that she is doing just as well in the U.S. Open as her scantily clad sister.
– J. Danielle Daniels for the Editorial Board