This really should not come as any surprise to anyone.
During this weekend’s NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Rockingham, Katherine Legge was caught up in a wreck when rival racer William Sawalich inadvertently spun Legge out. Her car then ricocheted into fan favourite Kasey Kahne’s car. In the days since, Katherine has been on the receiving end of horrible sexist comments on social media, which sadly is becoming ‘normal‘.
Legge has been very vocal about the criticism she faced, which has nothing to do with her performance, but are simply sexist attacks. She’s even received hate mail and death threats from losers sitting on their sofas who’ve never been in a race car in their lives. Below is a 90 second video of the crash.
What NASCAR bullies are giving her isn’t constructive feedback; these are personal attacks claiming that her position in the NASCAR team is only because she’s a woman. They label her a gimmick, and a ‘diversity, equity, inclusion’ hiring.
The level of hate against women in male-dominated NASCAR is just unfathomable. Some NASCAR fans seem to think that with enough hatred directed towards her, Katherine will quit and not compete the season.
ok first of all let me apologize on behalf of any contribution americans made to this situation. why dont people want diversity equity or inclusion?
poor katherine. i guess in the digital age many people just don’t hold back anymore. and death threats?!? something is very very wrong.
we little joes and joannes need to band together and stand up to the bullies. wisely, of course. but i would rather see the headline “katherine legge stands tall and proud after her race. ‘every time we drivers get in a racecar, our lives change. we learn something every time.'”
I don’t talk politics any more, but I’ll allow myself this exception. This is the impact that the orange man that y’all elected king is having on American society. Dignity and decorum are dead.
It’s outright racism and sexism when people make comments about someone being a DEI hire. It means that a black man (or a white woman) got the job that a white man should have gotten. Just horrible. And in what world are inclusivity or diversity bad things?
Katherine Legge has been a top-tier racer for nearly 25 years. She’s competed in the Indianapolis 600, the 24 Hours of Le Mans and countless other world class events. Two races in, and the NASCAR crowd are saying nasty, sexist stuff to her online. She doesn’t deserve this, but now she can’t walk away either!
People like us, who believe in equity and equality, should make sure to shine a light on this behaviour. Don’t let it slide. Don’t allow it to be normalized. Don’t let things be said in the shadows. Focus attention on groups (even institutions) that allow this behaviour.
Bottom line is money talks, and if sponsors see that NASCAR (for example) is a sexist and racist series, they’ll pull their funding. But the France family that runs NASCAR is too smart to let that happen. They need to step up and address this B.S. that Katherine is being subjected to.
So sad and uncalled for.
It is sad.
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Sad to see that someone from outside the good ol’ boys club who attempts to compete in the series gets treated so badly.
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But hate mail, death threats (no matter how hollow) and sexist comments on social media just show how undignified the NASCAR crowd have become.
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I met Katherine at Mosport several years ago, when she was driving the Delta Wing experimental race car. She was a delightful person, and a dignified English woman. I can’t stand that she has to endure redneck behaviour just to chase her racing dreams.
I agree. Law enforcement should track down people who make death threats on public forums. Sorry, rednecks.
I guess the problem is that if the series and law enforcement in Rockingham (wherever that is) don’t care… nothing will get done. The smartest thing Katherine can do is go public with this BS
It’s sad that a once great sporting event has turned into childish corporates greed changing the rules. Fans of today’s NASCAR will never know the joy of true racing. I went from going to 4/5 races a year to watching NHRA full time and not wasting time with “Let’s add another caution so everyone can compete, kinda like handing a trophy to anyone who enters. Good Luck to Katherine in the future of fake fans. Women rule and are recognized in NHRA for their talent.
As a kid I watched a little NASCAR cheering for Bill Elliott and his red car. As I got older, I got into IndyCar and because of the local race here in Toronto. Even though oval racing is a part of both series, I see so much wrong with NASCAR and I’m glad I don’t follow it.
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As you mentioned, Ernie, gimmicks like ‘stages’ and ‘playoffs’ and ‘competition cautions’ to stack the field up for a late race re-start are designed to give the NASCAR crowd what they really want; a big wreck. This all takes away from the legitimacy of the racing and some would say turn it into a blood sport.
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On the opposite end of the spectrum is NHRA. Although I cannot quote figures, there’s a greater percentage of female racers in drag racing than any other discipline. More women have won races and championships in NHRA than every other professional racing series combined. Erica Enders and Brittany Force are as well known as any racers… not because they’re women, but because they have skills.
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I feel sad for NASCAR. And as a Canadian I feel sad to see what’s happening in the US. I can’t believe the phrase ‘diversity, equality, inclusion’ has a negative meaning now. Those are good things! I guess some folks think that only white males should compete in racing… what they call “the good ol’ days”.
Wow so sad!