Imagine, for a moment

Imagine, for a moment, that Jo-Wilfried Tsonga had made comments about the inferiority of LGBTQ players.

Imagine, for a moment, that Giles Simon had insulted Jewish players.

Imagine, for a moment, that Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and John Isner had made "back door" derogatory comments about people of color.

Imagine, for a moment, that Roger Federer had defended someone accused of brutally beating a Mexican player.

Imagine, for a moment, that David Ferrer, Tomas Berdych, Toni Nadal, and the entire Spanish Fed Cup team had made insulting comments about gay players or black players. 

Sure, the bigots would have been down with it all, but there would also have been a huge uproar against such comments. 

But they didn't do that. They made insulting, derogatory, and sometimes sneakily offensive comments about women.

Furthermore, some of the same fans who push back against the campaign against equal pay, and who push back against the atrocious threats and insults directed at WTA players on social media, continue to idolize sexist--and sometimes misogynist (and really, does the difference even matter?)--ATP players. The double standard is breathtaking. 

Until sexism and misogyny are taken seriously by those who purport to disown all prejudice and bigotry, WTA players, and all female athletes (and all females, for that matter), will continue to be seen as not as good, not as worthy, not as human, as men.