Understanding how issues of equity in skateboarding are being addressed and the milestones and barriers that still face various populations

Dr Indigo Willing OAM is a sociologist, skateboarder, co-founder of the Girls Skate Brisbane network and a co-founder/facilitator of Consent is Rad. Working with a team of experts in the fields of youth cultures and the sociology of sport, her research projects aim to identify and understand how issues of equity in skateboarding are being addressed and the milestones and barriers that still face various populations, as well as gaining insights from skateboarding on ethical and cultural issues as it shifts from its subcultural origins to becoming globalised and formalised, including through its inclusion in the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games.

Main areas of interest

  1. Issues of representation, diversity and inclusion for minority populations in sport
  2. Ageing in youth cultures and forms of multigenerational participation in skateboarding (with Dr Ben Green, Professor Andy Bennett and Dr Adele Pavlidis)
  3. Issues of sexual violence, ‘rape culture’ and the promotion of consent in skateboarding (with Dr Adele Pavlidis and Professor Simone Fullagar)
  4. The changing social landscape and ethics of skateboarding (with external researcher Anthony Pappalardo)

Feature article

Studies of masculinities in lifestyle scenes and action sports

Sport, along with school and the military, is one of the most significant institutions of male initiation and bonding and studies of sport and masculinity have made extensive use of the concept of hegemonic masculinity. This concept, systematized by Connell (1995) refers to the pattern of practice that allows men’s dominance over women by configuring and embodying ways of ‘being a man’ and requiring all other men to position themselves in relation to the dominant formations. With this ascendancy achieved through culture, institutions, the media and persuasion it is however, also open to challenge and changes (see e.g. Connell and Messerschmidt 2005). This social constructionist approach to gender and masculinity guides our analysis of the BB.

Read more

Publications

Skate Journalism

Featured in Skate News/Media

Contact us

Email: i.willing@griffith.edu.au