I'm not sexist, I love the women, I'm all about equal

The words of Sean Strickland, “I’m not sexist, I love the women, I’m all about equal opportunity,” strike with the bluntness of a warrior’s tongue. Beneath their rough edge lies a truth both simple and eternal—that dignity is not measured by sex, but by the strength and will of the individual. He rejects the ancient chains of prejudice, proclaiming that all should stand upon the same ground of trial and honor, judged not by birth but by deed.

This sentiment echoes back through time. In the legends of Sparta, women were trained not to hide in silence but to be strong, to bear words as sharp as spears, and to uphold the city’s greatness alongside men. Their worth was not diminished by sex, but exalted by opportunity. And so Strickland, in his own rough manner, channels the same conviction: that a contest is only just when all may enter the field, whether man or woman, without barrier save their own courage.

In our more recent history, one remembers Billie Jean King, who in 1973 stepped onto the tennis court to face Bobby Riggs in the “Battle of the Sexes.” The world laughed and doubted, for Riggs boasted that no woman could defeat him. Yet she triumphed, not merely in sport but in symbolism, showing millions that equal opportunity was no idle phrase but a living power. Strickland’s words, though delivered with less grace, spring from the same well—that respect is proven in combat, in competition, in recognition of another’s strength.

Yet there is irony in his declaration. For to say “I love the women” is also to reveal how easily affection may be mistaken for respect. True equality lies not in fondness but in recognition of shared humanity, of the same fire that burns in all souls. The danger is that love may be used as a shield, while the deeper duty of justice remains unfulfilled. Still, his insistence on equal opportunity proclaims a vision that the ancients themselves would have honored: that the worth of a person lies in their deeds, not in the chains placed upon them by tradition.

So let the generations remember: equality is not granted through sentiment, nor through indulgence, but through the open gate, the level field, the fair contest. Whether in the arena, the workshop, or the council hall, let no one be denied the chance to rise. For when both men and women stand shoulder to shoulder, tested by the same trials, the strength of a people becomes unbreakable.