In 1972 a policy known as Title IX was written and mandated intoFederal policy. Title IX states “no person…..shall, on the basis ofsex.be subjected to discrimination under any educational program oractivity receiving federal financial assistance” (Glenn Sacks, “TitleIX Lawsuits are Endangering Men’s College Sports,” p. 3). Many highschools and colleges have not been able to comply with the Title IXstandards mostly because of money. After more than 30 years since thebeginning of Title IX, there is still no gender equality among men andwomen in sports.
Passed in 1972 by United States President Richard Nixon, Title IX wassupposed to open the door for women, but feminists have interpretatedTitle IX in a way to help strengthen women’s athletics (Sacks 1). During the Carter and Clinton administrations Title IX was convertedinto a weapon to enforce gender quotas, therefore abolishing as manymen’s college athletic teams as possible (Phyllis Schlafly, “SupremeCourt wrestles with Title IX,” p. 2). Over the years the words ofTitle IX author, former U.S. Republican Edith Green, must have beenforgotten when he stated that the law is “exceedingly explicit so thatthe establishment of quotas would be prohibited (Schlafly 2)”. It hasbecome obvious that quotas are the standard in 2005. Scholarships,spending and funding must somehow equal the ratio of 57% women – 43%men enrolled in college. Schools have been offered two options tomeet Title IX – create new women’s teams or cut men’s teams (Sacks 2).
Has the question really been answered yet? Has Title IX changedanything? YES. Between 1972 and 1997, 3.6 male athletes were droppedfrom their programs. During the same period, female athletesincreased by 5,800 while 20,000 male athletes were cut (Sacks 2). Women’s basketball programs are now allotted 15 scholarships, men’s13.5; women tennis is allotted 8 scholarships, men’s 4.5. By April of2002, over 350 NCAA men’s programs had been terminated since 1991,over 100 wrestling programs had been eliminated overall, and only 26colleges still had male gymnastic programs (J.P. Hoornstra, “Title IXsends teams to grave,” p. 2). It seems to me that Title IX wascreated with all the good intentions, but it seems that nobody reallyever thought it through.
On the flip side, coaches for an average college women’s team earns,on average, about $33,000 per season, while the coaches of men’s teamsearn about $67,000. Athletic programs for men spend an average of$1.6 million while women receive half that amount. It is obviousthat the quotas are not being followed. At this time though I do notsee this as a problem.
So what is the root of the problem when it comes to equality among menand women in collegiate sports? Football. Yes, football is the rootof the problem. Football is a money-making giant that happens todemand money be poured into its program. At the University ofSouthern California men’s teams – largely football – are responsiblefor over 99% of the near $20 million total revenue of the athleticdepartment (Sacks 2). It is a fact that 70% of Division I-A programsturn a profit. Due to the fact that schools need football’s revenueyet must also meet gender quotas, they are forced to cut non-revenuemen’s sports. Colleges cannot spend as much on women’s sports asthey can on men’s sports because there is no women’s equivalent forfootball (Sacks 3). Seems to me that football should be eliminatedfrom the equation. If feminists turned a cheek to football and themoney dedicated to its program every year, then maybe there would bemore equality across the board.
No one will ever say that women do not deserve the same rights as men,but some feminists are fighting a cause that just does not make sense.
Women’s sports just cannot match the revenue power of the men’ssports. This is not the Universities fault and it is definitely notthe fault of men. Yes, women should be able to have organized teamsand scholarships to field those teams, but forcing men’s sports tooperate on the same budget as women’s sports is ludicrous. Imagine ifthe NBA had to operate on the same budget as the WNBA. The WNBA has aleague salary of 12 million dollars.yes, a LEAGUE salary. Whileplayers in the NBA have individual salaries larger than 12 milliondollars. The problem with Title IX is that somebody along the waydecided to translate what was a great policy to insure the rights ofwomen when it came to education, into a policy about quotas andequality in competition. There is no reason why women’s sports cannotthrive on the collegiate level while male sports maintain thegreatness they have had. Gone are the superior men’s gymnastic andswimming teams from UCLA along with storied football programs fromNorthridge and Boston University. Men are being stripped of theiropportunities to compete. Not so that women’s sports can becreatedthose teams could exist also, but these teams are being lostbecause feminists push for ridiculous quotas to be strictly followed. The day will soon come when men’s collegiate sports like volleyball,wrestling and swimming no longer exist. Despite the idea that TitleIX would help women athletes, the numbers have actually caused theelimination of traditional women’s teams such as gymnastics in favorof large-squad sports (Schlafly 2). Was this really what Edith Greendesired when she penned Title IX 30 years ago? I believe Title IX waspenned as an instrument to help fight sex discrimination and is now apolicy mandating it (Sacks 3). “In ridiculing the senselessness ofgender quotas, the University of Kansas college newspaper publishedthis ironic comment. “College sports for women should be compulsory. Granted, many women may insist they do not want to play sports, butafter generations of patriarchal oppression, it is not realistic tothink women really know what they want. The goal of perfectly equalgender ratios is more important than what anybody ‘wants” (Schlafly2).
