Like a lot of people, I binge watched the new docu-series Cheer on Netflix. I cheered for a winning program for three years in college and won two championships, so I was pretty excited to see a show highlighting the experience of what it’s like behind the scenes. It was nostalgic and by the end, I was really rooting for Navarro to win again.
The doc-series overall did a great job of capturing the beauty of the sport. Here are a few of my favorite and not so favorite things about it.
Perception
The perception of cheerleading as a whole is that it isn’t a sport. Ultimately, cheerleaders are seen as sideline accessories cheering on their respective football, basketball or other sports. Those activities aren’t quite the same as competitive cheerleading. In competition cheerleading you stunt, dance and do gymnastics. There’s a greater level of athleticism to competitive cheerleading.
Cost of Cheerleading
The series spent some time talking about the overall costs of obtaining the skills and competing. Especially prior to college. Those kids aren’t just learning some of the essential skills of cheer like tumbling and stunting when they walk through the door. They have the foundation. Many of them do all stars and that’s costly. It’s expensive to pay for travel, membership fees, entrance fees, uniforms and training. The costs can get overwhelming. Jerry’s mom struggled and sacrificed to keep him in cheer and I’m glad they shared this part of the story. It takes a good amount of money.
Drops and Injuries
In cheerleading, drops and injuries happen. However, I felt like the number of drops happening for this squad in one season exceeded anything I ever experienced in three seasons during college. Usually, when working on a new skill everyone is attentive and standing around a stunt in all directions. I didn’t feel like the men on the squad were as attentive while spotting as they needed to be. I know (I hope) that some of that was dramatized for television I was glad to read that the squad made changes to the pyramid after that happen. Ultimately, if you’re doing a pyramid, there are layers to it and one layer doesn’t go up, the person at the top might be coming from a different direction so you have to watch out to make sure they don’t fall. The culture within cheerleading is to push through injuries so a lot of that is what you see on the show.
Loyalty
You really have to love cheerleading to do it at any age. You really have to love cheerleading to do it in college. I mean, you have to be committed to it like a relationship. I spent maybe 15 minutes total on the competition floor for the three years I cheered in college. I spent countless hours practicing, tumbling, primping, and team building. It takes up so much time it’s a full part-time job. Seriously, these kids love it. It’s their life and for a season it has to be just because collegiate cheer is the top tier of cheerleading. There really isn’t much else above it. Cheering in college is hard. You have to love the sport, sacrifice time and have the mental capacity to deal with everything involved. It’s a lot but it’s worth it if you really love cheerleading and find the right home.
Diversity
It’s just not there. It’s an elephant in the room type of conversation because it isn’t talked about enough. Honestly, I noticed but never felt like there was much that I could do about it back then. It’s hard not to notice when a squad walks out and there are no women of color on that mat. Yes, there are a large number of black male cheerleaders on coed squads, like Navarro, but there just aren’t as many women of color on coed or all-girl cheer teams. It’s slightly better than it used to be from what I’ve seen but there’s room for more. A lot of groups are elevating black girls cheering competitively and I love to see it. I have a lot more thoughts that I’m still thinking through on this topic.
Sportsmanship
One of my favorite moments in the series happens between the athletes. LaDarius and Jerry are roommates. LaDarius is an all-star tumbler who has had a hard journey getting to this level. Jerry has had a difficult time but also has a supportive community behind him. Though Jerry has progressed a lot with his stunting, he doesn’t tumble which reduces his chances of competing or as they say on the docu-series ‘making mat’. I loved watching the two of them be vulnerable and honest with each other about ways to grow.
Watching #CheerNetflix and Jerry just told LaDarius the truth about how people perceive him and it was a moment I can appreciate. Get friends who tell you the truth about yourself and are unafraid.
— Dana Jones (@TheGreatDanaJ) January 11, 2020
In the end, they both made mat and I’ve enjoyed watching them do the press rounds on Ellen.
Ultimately, I’m a fan of any show or media that brings well deserved attention and conversation to a sport that I love! I hope there’s a season two coming soon. Maybe they will feature other squads too.
