“I think it’s important in all of my books to place the sports story within the context of the place and times in which the athletes operated. So in this story, that means writing about the history of feminism in the U.S., the feminist movement of the 1970s, figures such as Betty Friedan and Phyllis Schlafly, events such as the Miss America protest of 1968 and the International Year of the Woman conference in Mexico City in 1975, and the conventional attitudes about women’s athletics. The women on the 1976 Olympic team grew up at a time that women were told not to sweat, not to build muscles, not to be competitive, and not to play sports. They had no promise of earning a college scholarship or playing professional sports. So they didn’t just earn victories on the basketball court, they climbed mountains built on centuries of misogyny and sexism in society at large. The broader context is what makes the basketball story interesting and significant.” Read the full Q&A on Inaugural Ballers here.
Author of Inaugural Ballers, Singled Out, Games of Deception and Strong Inside
