Globalsport Matters With Kenneth Shropshire

Pregnancy is a natural part of life. Yet female athletes — in particular those in individual sports like track and field — are penalized by their sponsors for getting pregnant. U.S. Olympian Alysia Montaño, working with the New York Times, took issue with Nike's #DreamCrazy ad campaign and created a parody video with the #DreamMaternity hashtag. Nike's campaign was meant to be inspirational, showing girls and women competing and succeeding despite social norms that said they couldn't. Montaño and others including Allyson Felix, called out sponsors who drop or reduce pay and benefits to female athletes when they get pregnant. The activism of athletes like Montaño, Allyson Felix and Serena Williams are bringing a spotlight on how female athletes are penalized for having children.