Introduction
Despite persistent inequities between men
and women in sports, the federal government has been very
reluctant to enforce the law. The Department of Education's
Office of Civil Rights, charged with enforcing Title IX,
is underfunded and, despite the reluctance of schools to
comply with gender equity, has never pulled federal funding
from schools or colleges that discriminate against women
and girls. Enforcement of Title IX has, instead, been left
to individuals. Women and girls have had to file lawsuits
on their own to challenge discriminatory practices in schools
and colleges. While almost all of these lawsuits have so
far been resolved in favor of women athletes and coaches,
this is an expensive and time-consuming avenue to gender
equity.
Opposition to gender equity in sports comes
from football coaches who fear that putting more resources
into women's programs will mean taking money away from football.
When Title IX was first passed, the National Collegiate
Athletics Administration led a campaign to have football
exempted from gender equity requirements, arguing that football
teams produce profits which fund other sports. This my this
just one that this report debunks. Few football teams make
a profit; most run at a large deficit. In early 1995, the
American Football Coaches Association again called on Congress
to revisit Title IX, saying Title IX was hurting football
funding.
Opposition to gender equity also comes from
coaches of men's minor sports such as wrestling, golf, and
gymnastics. These coaches have joined together to lobby
Congress to change Title IX, which they argue is hurting
their sports by taking opportunities away from men. This
is another myth -- that as more women become athletes, there
will be less opportunity for men to play. In fact, this
is not the case. As more women have entered athletics, they
have not displaced men - instead, the total number of athletes
has increased.
This report also points out that our current
model of athletics heavily favors only the 66 superboy"
athlete, leaving out women and all men who are not superstars.
These "superstars" are trained to perform for big scholarships
and eventually, for a few, huge professional salaries -
often at great cost to the health and well-being of these
athletes. This report makes a case for more emphasis on
"lifetime" sports such as walking, swimming, and biking.
Also included is a discussion of "partnership" models of
sports that emphasize health, cooperation, and enjoyment
over the "winning at all costs" philosophy that has caused
so many athletic injuries, even among children.
Despite the obstacles women face in athletics,
many women have led and are leading the way to gender equity.
This report profiles women athletes and administrators who
have paved the way, and offers "Strategies for Change" that
women and girl athletes, coaches, administrators, and parents
can take to make school and college athletics more equitable.
Is athletics an important feminist issue?
Yes. Participation in sports benefits women just as it does
men, helping to develop leadership skills, boosting self-esteem
and grades, and promoting physical fitness and health.
Because of the pervasive discrimination against
women and girls in sports, and because of the important
benefits of sports participation, the Feminist Majority
Foundation formed a Task Force on Women and Girls in Sports
in May 1993. Chaired by Molly Yard, former president of
the National Organization for Women and a long-time women's
rights and civil rights activist, the Task Force brings
together feminist advocates, women athletes, athletics administrators,
and sports activists to address the issue of sex discrimination
in sports.
This Empowering Women in Sports report
is a publication of the Feminist Majority Foundation's Task
Force on Women and Girls in Sports.
