EasterBlack-owned or founded brands at TargetGroceryClothing, Shoes & AccessoriesBabyHomeFurnitureKitchen & DiningOutdoor Living & GardenToysElectronicsVideo GamesMovies, Music & BooksSports & OutdoorsBeautyPersonal CareHealthPetsHousehold EssentialsArts, Crafts & SewingSchool & Office SuppliesParty SuppliesLuggageGift IdeasGift CardsClearanceTarget New ArrivalsTarget Finds#TargetStyleTop DealsTarget Circle DealsWeekly AdShop Order PickupShop Same Day DeliveryRegistryRedCardTarget CircleFind Stores

The Quest for Social Justice in Sport - (Emerald Studies in Sport and Gender) by Helen Jefferson Lenskyj (Hardcover)

The Quest for Social Justice in Sport - (Emerald Studies in Sport and Gender) by  Helen Jefferson Lenskyj (Hardcover) - 1 of 1
$60.00 when purchased online
Target Online store #3991

About this item

Highlights

  • Although social justice initiatives in education and the workplace have decades-long histories, sport has been slow to follow.
  • About the Author: Helen Jefferson Lenskyj (she/her) is Professor Emerita, University of Toronto.
  • 168 Pages
  • Social Science, Sociology
  • Series Name: Emerald Studies in Sport and Gender

Description



About the Book



Applying an intersectional analysis, the book examines issues of sex/gender/sexualities, disability, Global North/Global South disparities, doping, and violence in all its forms.



Book Synopsis



Although social justice initiatives in education and the workplace have decades-long histories, sport has been slow to follow. In the areas of sport policies, sport practices and sport scholarship, liberal/reform approaches dominate, while the structural roots of injustice - racism, colonialism, misogyny, homophobia, disablism, homophobia and transphobia - remain largely unchanged.

Use and misuse of sport sciences contributes to this pattern, and the Olympic industry serves as the machine driving these forces.

Applying an intersectional analysis, the book examines issues of sex/gender/sexualities, disability, Global North/Global South disparities, doping, and violence in all its forms. A discussion of action and outlaw sports as a route to empowerment is followed by an exploration of community-based initiatives and a model for physical activity that puts joy at the centre of human movement.



Review Quotes




The Quest for Social Justice in Sport is the provocative book that athletic participants need and that most sports organizations will do their best to dutifully ignore, lest they find themselves questioning the premise of their existence. In an era when sport is being put to work to advance oppressive conservative agendas, at the cost of community, the joys of inclusion and belonging, and the livelihoods and even lives of some of the most marginalized participants, Helen Lenskyj cuts through the noise, delivering an exacting diagnosis of the root problems of the failings of contemporary sport and what can be done about them. In this strident, fearless critique of the social exclusions and hierarchies that have been normalized through sporting practices, and of the corporate and political players that have transformed sport into a win-at-all-costs industry, Lenskyj embodies the best of feminist scholarship, attending to the diverse ways that power and domination compromise sport's promise to celebrate the breadth of human diversity and be a vehicle of social equality. The solution Lenksyj proposes asks of sports lovers to face the notion that the time has come for sport itself--that is, the very word, and the violent practices this word has come to stand for--to be revised, replaced with a liberatory language and practice that allows us to collectively access the joy of movement.

--Dr Madeleine Pape, Olympian, Sociologist

I used to ask my students to imagine a world without elite competitive sport--and they couldn't. It's everywhere: in schools, on screens, billboards, and in our feeds. No wonder it's hard to see past it.

In this accessible and thought-provoking book, Helen Lenskyj not only challenges us to imagine alternatives--she shows us what they look like. Through a sharp critique of how colonial norms, binary thinking, and the Olympic industry have shaped the last half-century of sport, she outlines the deep inequalities built into the system. But this isn't just critique--it's a reimagining.

By centering the voices of activists and scholars, and spotlighting vibrant, community-based forms of movement, Lenskyj offers a vision rooted in joy, justice, and belonging. And maybe--just maybe--it'll help the next generation see beyond the narrow confines of elite sport and toward something more inclusive, more humane, and more hopeful.

--Janice Forsyth, Professor, Indigenous Land-Based Physical Culture and Wellness Kinesiology, University of British Columbia

Helen Jefferson Lenskyj is one of the world's foremost critical scholars of sports. For decades, her writings have been both destinations and starting points for many of us. The Quest for Social Justice in Sport is both a distillation of her work and a new and innovative intervention: a distillation in that it follows on from her established concerns; new and innovative because it takes on sports' most pressing contemporary issues with equally powerful research, theorization, and commitment

--Toby Miller, Instituto Tecnológico de Monterrey

Helen Jefferson Lenskyj is pre-eminent among critical sport scholars - academics who have written and taught about sport as a prism through which to explain the social and political world in all its often ugly manifestations. Most of these ugly manifestations - colonialism, the use of banned drugs, commercialism, violence, corrosive individualism, racism, sexism, transphobia - are considered in this excellent book, along with examples and suggestions of how sport can be reimagined as what the philosopher Ivan Illich called a tool for conviviality. More and more people, as the book recognises, value physical activity for its intrinsic pleasures and not for fame, fortune or the establishment of world records. This, as Lenskyj shows, means not only considering strategies of 'desportification' but also acknowledging the nurturant properties of long-suppressed Indigenous cultures. Way to go.

--Stephen Wagg, Honorary Fellow, International Centre for Sports History and Culture, De Montfort University, Leicester UK



About the Author



Helen Jefferson Lenskyj (she/her) is Professor Emerita, University of Toronto. Her work as a researcher and activist on gender and sport issues began in the 1980s, and her critiques of the Olympic industry include seven books, most recently The Olympic Games: A Critical Approach (Emerald, 2020).

Dimensions (Overall): 9.0 Inches (H) x 6.0 Inches (W) x .44 Inches (D)
Weight: .87 Pounds
Suggested Age: 22 Years and Up
Number of Pages: 168
Genre: Social Science
Sub-Genre: Sociology
Series Title: Emerald Studies in Sport and Gender
Publisher: Emerald Publishing Limited
Theme: General
Format: Hardcover
Author: Helen Jefferson Lenskyj
Language: English
Street Date: September 15, 2025
TCIN: 1002878489
UPC: 9781836625155
Item Number (DPCI): 247-46-4550
Origin: Made in the USA or Imported

Shipping details

Estimated ship dimensions: 0.44 inches length x 6 inches width x 9 inches height
Estimated ship weight: 0.87 pounds
We regret that this item cannot be shipped to PO Boxes.
This item cannot be shipped to the following locations: American Samoa (see also separate entry under AS), Guam (see also separate entry under GU), Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico (see also separate entry under PR), United States Minor Outlying Islands, Virgin Islands, U.S., APO/FPO

Return details

This item can be returned to any Target store or Target.com.
This item must be returned within 90 days of the date it was purchased in store, shipped, delivered by a Shipt shopper, or made ready for pickup.
See the return policy for complete information.

Related Categories

Get top deals, latest trends, and more.

Privacy policy

Footer

About Us

About TargetCareersNews & BlogTarget BrandsBullseye ShopSustainability & GovernancePress CenterAdvertise with UsInvestorsAffiliates & PartnersSuppliersTargetPlus

Help

Target HelpReturnsTrack OrdersRecallsContact UsFeedbackAccessibilitySecurity & FraudTeam Member ServicesLegal & Privacy

Stores

Find a StoreClinicPharmacyTarget OpticalMore In-Store Services

Services

Target Circle™Target Circle™ CardTarget Circle 360™Target AppRegistrySame Day DeliveryOrder PickupDrive UpFree 2-Day ShippingShipping & DeliveryMore Services
PinterestFacebookInstagramXYoutubeTiktokTermsCA Supply ChainPrivacy PolicyCA Privacy RightsYour Privacy ChoicesInterest Based AdsHealth Privacy Policy