The
Stadium. An American History of
Politics, Protest, and Play. Frank
Andre Guridy
Sports fans
attend stadiums and arenas to watch a game or their favorite teams
compete. This is a hobby that has been
experienced for more than a century in American Culture. Most fans may not think about the connection
of history and social interactions to these very edifices that populate many
cities around the nation and even the globe.
Author Frank Andre Guridy explains just how important stadiums are in
our culture and the impact they have on society and people from all walks of
life in his latest book, The Stadium.
Guridy, an
author and professor at Columbia, explores and documents the rich history of
the stadium including the likely origin in Manhattan. The content is very organized, well
researched and at times simply fascinating.
He gets the reader to not only go back in time and grasp the origin of
many key arenas but also how it impacted the very people that would come to
these structures to spectate and be entertained. As time changes so do the values of societies
impact on race, gender, religion, sexual orientation and in more modern times
the almighty dollar.
Inside The
Stadium, Guridy asserts that there is more to these erected figures than just
hosting a sporting event or contest. In
fact, the author claims that the stadiums were built overtly or otherwise to
cultivate and preserve the power and status of the white man. The argument centers around how early
stadiums kept blacks either out of the arena altogether or when upon admittance
seated in separate and less prestigious viewing points. Another part of the argument was revealed in
how women trying to break into the sports media industry were initially locked
out of the press box and especially the players locker room. Another part of the book discusses how the
LGBQT movement attempted to champion its cause by establishing the “gay games”
in San Franciso in the early 1970’s.
Finally, as owners and operators figured out how to maximize their
stadium profits, society endured more of a corporate takeover not only in
rampant advertisement but also often squeezing the little guy out of either
affording moderate tickets or from not being able to attend at all.
As an author
identifying as African American and Puerto-Rican, one might expect a hardline
response to mostly white (and occasionally racist) myriad stadium and arena
owners for asserting their dominance and leaving less opportunity for others in
humanity. While Guridy certainly
called out racism, sexism, and other misogynist points of view over the course
of time regarding stadium ethos and pathos, his main point seems to note that the
layout of fans inside of these edifices often mirrored society in general. The author also was equitable in pointing
out how as barriers were broken, and civil rights were advanced, the makeup of
the spectators often changed along with it.
We are reminded
in the book how stadiums are not built just for sporting events. Indeed, Guridy also includes era-changing
events such as musical concerts, political rallies and even, in the early days
of crowd gathering, the circus. Combine
that with various landscapes included the wide-open culture in 19th century
New York City, the segregationist south in New Orleans, the growing pains of
Los Angelos during the civil rights era or even the nation's capital with baseball
and football franchise owners known for their racist views and attitudes, we
have a book that packs quite a punch of history, politics in general, and
race.
The Stadium
contains three hundred and ten pages. It is well put together and researched. The author’s writing prose is easy enough
to navigate although it did feel at different times during the book that more than
necessary details were included. Clearly
the author made it a point to address the inequities for which the stadiums
around the nation and throughout history have served as a catalyst,
intentionally or otherwise. While
the book is not necessarily an easy read, it is filled with intrigue for
exactly as it is purported. One does not
need to be a stadium attendee or even an avid sports fan to grasp the finer
points in this intriguing manuscript.
·
You
might like to read this book if you are a fan of American history.
·
You
might like to read this book if you like to read stories about politics and
sports.
·
You
might like to read this book if you seek books about race, politics and sports.
·
You
might like to read this book if you have ever visited or attended an event in an
arena or stadium.
Learn more about the author on X: https://x.com/search?q=Frank%20Andre%20Guridy&src=typed_query
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