Pom poms are for men too.

I like cheerleaders. 

They make me feel cheerful for some reason.
One thing I haven't been happy about over the years is the lack of male cheerleaders. 
Especially in the American football arenas.

Cheerleading has been a female activity for decades.
Thankfully, that's now changing.
Smiley, energetic males who can throw a shape have made serious inroads in to this all female domain.
The LA Rams were the first American football team to introduce male cheerleaders. 
Another 7 teams have followed suit.
However, they have forgotten one important thing.
The pom pom.
The male cheerleaders perform without pom poms.
That is like asking a carpenter to saw a piece of wood with his finger.
This is arrant discrimination in a very public form.
In our new enlightened age it verges on gender cruelty.
The pom pom is the most important part of a cheerleaders uniform.

Male cheerleader using imaginary pom poms.

Pom poms attract the eye.
This helps the cheerleaders to keep their audience's focus.
The audience are literally mesmerised by the colourful ribbon balls.

Pom poms are a highly technical piece of equipment.
They smooth out any syncopation issues.
If the hands and pom poms are in time a cheerleader can be slightly out of time with their steps and the audience won't notice it.
Your eyes are always on the hands. 
Not the feet.
There is also a confidence issue.
A lot of men's hands are ugly which can affect male self esteem.

The pom pom is like a fancy dress costume for the hands. They give confidence to the performer and the dancer is much less self aware.
Without pom poms the male cheerleaders are left to carry a sign. 
Or they are asked to wave their hands empty handed.

Dude-where do I put my hands?

Pom pomless male cheerleaders is a blatant act of discrimination.
It is cruel and uncaring.
Cheerleaders are meant to be one integrated, cohesive visual tour de force.

Hey Stacey-Joe can I borrow a pom pom?

I spoke to one  of the New England Patriots crew recently, Bobbi-Leanne, who said they are experimenting with some new choreography which involves giving their two male cheerleaders, (Driss and Steven), pom poms. 
Let's hope the other US teams follow suit.
In the meanwhile, if you feel as angry as me about this issue
please sign my petition for pom pom equality at:
POM POMS FOR ALL.com

Where does it say females only?

Together we can end this cruelty.