Briana Scurry says the 1999 USWNT's biggest win came at the bargaining table
"You helped fight for equality for other people who you'll probably never meet."
Lindsay Gibbs
Jun 3, 2019, 8:00 am
Everywhere Briana Scurry looks, be it billboards or commercials, social media or magazines, she is reminded that the 2019 Women’s World Cup in France is just a week away. The teams are all making their way overseas, practices are underway, and in a few short weeks a champion will be crowned. The National Soccer Hall of Famer, who won two Olympic gold medals and the 1999 Women’s World Cup as a goalkeeper for the U.S. Women’s National Team (USWNT), is giddy with anticipation.
“It’s like a pot of boiling,” Scurry told ThinkProgress at the “Athletes + Activism” panel hosted by The Atlantic and the Washington Mystics on Thursday. “And soon, it’s just going to be boiling all the way.”
Her zeal is understandable. This year, the USWNT is defending its title from the 2015 Women’s World Cup in Canada. It won’t be an easy task; most experts think this the most competitive field in the tournament’s history. But the U.S. team certainly looks up for the task.
And as if the stakes needed to be intensified somehow, while the USWNT is competing in France, its members are simultaneously suing the U.S. Soccer Federation (USSF) for gender discrimination. In that way, this latest iteration of women’s soccer Team America already shares an important legacy with their famous predecessors that first stamped the team into our national consciousness.
https://thinkprogress.org/for-briana-scurry-labor-fights-are-the-most-indelible-part-of-1999-womens-world-cup-legacy-c45e08069b1e/
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“Some people think, well, it’s unfortunate that that is actually something that has to be continued. But it’s also something that is really rewarding, because you know that you did more than just play a game, you helped fight for equality for other people who you’ll probably never meet,” Scurry said.
“And now you see with other women’s federation’s, because of what we’ve done, now they’re doing it, and we’ll probably never meet them either. But they’re doing their own little battle. And they’re inspired by us. And for me, that’s inspiration and creation is what I’m here for.”
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