Photo by Kelsi Barkved / The Phoenix News
It is no secret that beer is crafted for men. As outdated phrases like “be a man” are slowly becoming memories, I write this article in hopes that soon, the astonishment surrounding a woman ordering a beer over a Cosmopolitan could be buried in the same time capsule.
Perhaps the gender stereotypes that lead to a woman being robbed of discovering the magical world of beer is a more tasteful topic of debate than advocating for a game that results in the privilege to drink sweat-tasting college beer. That argument, however, is beside the point. I am on the pursuit of hoppiness and that pursuit is absolute equal opportunities for men and women.
Last evening, I attended yet another party in which I observed a familiar scene: girls breaking it down on the living room dance floor and bros lined up at the pong table ready to win their next round. In high school, when I started getting invited to house parties, I was just another one of those girls who walked in and steered far away from the pong table until the early hours of the morning, when I would finally be drunk enough to blame my lack of coordination and experience on the alcohol. Although that never really directly affected the amount of fun I would have at a party, I now use my beer goggles differently; I now understand how this behaviour ties into concepts far beyond a silly game of red cups. This party game reinforces many socially constructed identities, and can also lead to some unfortunate events for the women who are brave enough to rise up to the challenge.
The consequences of this culture include women being once again made to subconsciously believe that they lack the coordination and ability to play sports that men are inherently born with. The game also provides another chance for men to assert their masculinity. God forbid a group of girls beats a goupr of guys at a match, because then those guys will be ridiculed by their male counterparts shouting phrases like “wow man, you let a girl beat you.” I can only imagine how unnerving this experience can be for a male.
Here I am, in my second year of university and I still suck at beer pong. My friends in high school proposed that we practice with water when we had nothing better to do on a Sunday. But why do I have to take time out of my day to train for a party game when most guys can work on this skill as they go? Not that I’m denied a place at the table, but it is a little intimidating. I fear the self-perpetuation stems from the preconceived notion that all girls have some sort of disability that makes them aim for anything other than the target, or nothing at all.
A final point I want to stress is that if these ideas continue, what does this mean for girls who are constantly losing the game? They are getting more drunk and more vulnerable as their triangle loses its corners. Sure, no one is forcing us to drink every time, but if we do not, we risk getting called a pussy, so it is better to just chug and try to catch up to our opponent. When girls are more drunk, they are no longer in a state to consent and this is when I have witnessed regrettable and unfortunate events to occur.
To be brewtally honest, a great reason that I have such an interest in breaking down this stereotype is because I am such a beer lover. I love my unfiltered Trappists, filtered German blondes, and our local Vancouver Craft Ales. In fact, as I finish writing, I will probably treat myself to a frosty pint. I once dated a guy who introduced me to the diversity of beer, and at times I even expressed a greater appreciation for the art than he did. Just as a salad is no more a girl” plate than a beefy burger is a manly meal, my dream is that we move towards a world in which I am not expected to be drunk off a mickey of vodka and forever suck at beer pong.