Equality, sports, and Title IX - Erin Buzuvis and Kristine Newhall

375,465 views ・ 2013-06-19

TED-Ed


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Today lots of girls play sports.
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But, for a long time, girls were not encouraged
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to kick,
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throw,
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run,
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jump,
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shoot,
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slide,
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or hit like boys.
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So, why did things change?
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And how much have they changed?
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Are girls and boys treated equally
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when it comes to sports?
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To begin to answer these questions,
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we have to look back.
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In 1972, Congress passed a law called Title IX,
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which protected girls and women
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from discrimination in schools,
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colleges,
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and universities.
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This included discrimination in school-sponsored sports.
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At that time, only 15% of college athletes were women,
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and in high schools,
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only 7% of athletes were girls.
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Female athletes didn't get a lot of support either
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and often had to provide their own uniforms and equipment.
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It was Title IX that forced school administrators
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to make sports more equal.
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But what does equal mean in sports?
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The government developed rules
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to measure equality under two general categories:
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participation
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and treatment.
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In the early days of Title IX,
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the number of girls playing sports was so low
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that it would have been very difficult
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for schools to suddenly provide exactly the same number
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of opportunities for girls and boys.
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Instead, the government wrote rules
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that gave schools three options, or tests,
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to demonstrate fairness in opportunities for girls.
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The three tests are
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proportionality,
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progress,
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and satisfied interests.
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A school can pick which test to follow.
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Proportionality means that girls should receive
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the same percentage of athletic opportunities
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as the percentage of girls in the student body.
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So, if 51% of students are girls,
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then girls should have approximately
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51% of the opportunities to play sports.
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The second test, progress,
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requires schools to make up for the days
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when girls had fewer opportunities
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by adding new sports for girls on a regular basis.
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The third test asks if girls interested
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in athletics are satisfied.
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Under this test, a school must regularly ask
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female students what sports they are interested in
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and also take into consideration the popularity
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of certain sports in the area
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where the school is located.
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It must, then, add teams according to the girls' interests.
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Another important part of Title IX
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is that it doesn't just look at how many
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athletic opportunities are available to each sex
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but whether those opportunities are of equal quality.
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Specifically, Title IX requires equality
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between boys and girls teams for things
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like equipment and supplies,
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publicity,
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the scheduling of games and practice times,
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and the quality and number of coaches.
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Girls should also have equal access
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to locker rooms,
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practice spaces, and competitive facilities,
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as well as medical services.
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So, if the best time to play basketball is on Friday nights
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because that's when most parents and fans can come,
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then the girls and boys teams
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should take turns playing on Friday night.
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If boys teams play in a stadium with lights,
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scoreboards,
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and concession stands,
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then girls teams must have the same opportunity,
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either by sharing those facilities
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or getting their own of equal quality.
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But, as we all know,
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just because a law exists
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doesn't mean that everybody follows it.
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School officials are responsible
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for making sure there is fairness in sports,
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but you can help, too,
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by keeping an eye on your own school.
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Look around.
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Are there a lot more boys than girls who play sports?
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Is the boys' soccer field better than the girls'?
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Are athletic trainers available to all teams equally?
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Does the baseball team get new uniforms every year,
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while the softball team gets them every three years?
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If you think there might be inequality in your schools,
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you can approach a school administrator,
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a parent,
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or the Office of Civil Rights,
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a government agency that makes sure schools
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comply with Title IX
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because equality is important for everyone,
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both on the field and off.
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