By: Ashley Tillery
Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston tried to give a speech about self-confidence and leadership skills to elementary students at Melrose Elementary School in St. Petersburg, Florida. Unfortunately, the feedback he hoped for did not go as planned!
Jameis Winston made a comment about gender expectation that did not sit well with many folks, which resulted in a hash out on social media. Jameis Winston stated:
“All my young boys, stand up. The ladies, sit down. But all my boys, stand up. We strong, right? We strong! We strong, right? All my boys, tell me one time: I can do anything I put my mind to. Now, a lot of boys aren’t supposed to be soft-spoken. You know what I’m saying? One day y’all are going to have a very deep voice like this (in deep voice). One day, you’ll have a very, very deep voice. But the ladies, they’re supposed to be silent, polite, gentle. My men, my men (are) supposed to be strong.”
This statement made many people stand up and shout out their opinions about gender expectations from Winston. Individuals such as ESPN Reporter Jane McManus hashed out her difference of opinion on twitter, stating “You have to ignore a lot in order to throw Jameis Winston up as a role model for 5thgraders.”
You have to ignore a lot in order to throw Jameis Winston up as a role model for 5th graders.
— Jane McManus (@janesports) February 23, 2017
After receiving the opposite of opinions about his choice of words to the students, Winston commented:
“I was making an effort to interact with a young male in the audience who didn’t seem to be paying attention, and I didn’t want to single him out so I asked all the boys to stand up. During my talk, I used a poor word choice that may have overshadowed that positive message for some.”
Well, his heart was in the right place! What do you think…?
