We were finishing up dinner Wednesday night when my son started telling a story about his friend Morgan.
She and a fifth grade boy were wearing the same shirt that day: an Alex Morgan jersey. (Alex Morgan is the goal-crushing forward for the U.S. Women’s National Team, an Olympic gold medalist and a Women’s World Cup champion, if you don’t know.) Several kids have been wearing Alex Morgan jerseys lately, my son said, and sometimes they joke that the “Morgan” on the back refers to his pal, not the super famous soccer player.
“Wait, boys wear Alex Morgan jerseys?” I asked.
I tried to use Botox Brow, which is what author Michelle Icard says to use when you want your kids to keep talking. You pretend you just got Botox and your face can’t really register emotion, especially surprise or judgment, which tend to make kids cut their stories short.
“Yeah,” he said. “Why?”
“That’s cool,” I said. “I guess I just don’t remember boys wearing jerseys for female athletes when I was a kid.”
Later I asked my daughter, who had already left the dinner table when my son was telling his Morgan story.
“Do boys wear Women’s National Team jerseys at your school?”
She goes to an enormous Chicago Public School on the North Side. It serves 7th through 12th graders. I was careful to do Botox Brow.
“Yeah why.”
One sentence. Yeah why. Like I was asking if people still need oxygen.
“I see women and girls wearing male athletes’ jerseys a lot,” I said, “but I guess I’ve just never seen a boy or man wearing a female athlete’s.”
Her earbuds were back in by that point.
This feels huge to me, if not to them.
Over in adult world, where change occurs at a more glacial pace, we’re arguing over whether the women’s team should score so many goals (rude!), and whether they should have celebrated those goals so enthusiastically (super rude!).
Over in adult world, CBS News is tweeting, “Eagles tight end Zach Ertz leaves training camp to watch wife in World Cup.” “Wife” is Julie Ertz, a 2015 World Cup champion, Chicago Red Stars defender and member of the U.S. Women’s National Team.
Meanwhile, boys and girls alike are walking around with the names of female athletes on their backs. You don’t wear someone’s name on your back unless you revere them, respect their game, dream a little bit about being more like them.
The fact that fifth grade boys and high school boys and, really, any age boys look up to women athletes in that way? To me, that feels like tremendous progress. To me, that feels like we’re getting somewhere.
Hop on, grown-ups. The kids are taking us where we need to go.
Heidi Stevens will be in conversation with Jennifer Weiner at 7 p.m. Thursday at Venue SIX10, 610 S. Michigan Ave. Tickets are $42 and include a copy of “Mrs. Everything.”
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