Category: Title IX

Transgender issues are a topic at the forefront in today’s society. A divisive matter arising from the trangendered, is whether transgender individuals should be allowed to participate in athletics as the gender they identify with, or if they should participate in athletics as their natural-born identity. There are many stakeholders involved, the athletes competing as their natural- born gender, the transgender athletes, administrators and policy-makers. Currently, there are no national policies which allows states and even local governments to implement regulations. This causes inconsistencies, inequity and an uneven playing field for athletes hoping to obtain both personal best performances and college scholarships. The issues of equal rights, fairness and competitive advantage are just a few of the hot button topics. Transgender athletes should not be allowed to participate and compete as their chosen sexual identity. It is a violation of Title IX policy and there are distinct advantages for a transgender athlete. Clear national policy needs to be defined and implemented going forward.

The first group of stakeholders are the student athletes competing as their natural-born gender (cisgender according to the Oxford Dictionary). These individuals do not feel it is fair for transgender athletes to compete with their chosen gender identity. Cisgender athletes contend transgender athletes have unfair advantages in competition. Natural born males are faster physically and conditioned differently than females, and natural-born females have longer endurance than males. Female athletes also believe this violates long-standing equal rights policies.

Three Connecticut high school track athletes have filed a federal lawsuit in regard to this issue. “Girls deserve to compete on a level playing field. Women fought long and hard to earn the equal athletic opportunities that Title IX provides. Allowing boys to compete in girls’ sports reverses nearly 50 years of advances for women under this law. We shouldn’t force these young women to be spectators in their own sports.’ (Press, High School) Title IX was enacted in 1972. It was created to end imbalances between men and women in athletics by creating equal access. Title IX ruled educational facilities that are federally funded cannot discriminate against students or employees based on sex. Title IX dictates those schools must provide equal treatment of the sexes in all parts of education, including athletics. The lawsuit contends Title IX means you compete based on your natural-born sexual identity (cisgender). Their viewpoint firmly believes Title IX and its provisions prohibit discrimination only on the basis of natural-born sexual identity and not on transgender status. They feel natural-born males who compete against natural-born females are violating the rules of Title IX. They are adamant Title IX was not enacted to include and protect transgender athletes.

This lawsuit argues allowing transgender males to compete as females provides an unfair advantage in sports competitions. If a male athlete who self-identifies as a girl joins a female athletic team, the lawsuit argues those self-identifying athletes have a natural competitive advantage.

The Connecticut athletes feel they have lost out on state records and even college scholarships due to the transgender athletes competing. Two biological males finished first and second in the 55-meter dash at the Connecticut high school girls’ indoor track championships. “A female competitor potentially loses the opportunity to compete in front of college coaches and the ability to gain scholarship opportunities is incredibly detrimental.” (Press, High School) Had they not completed, the girls would have taken the titles. “The complaint from Connecticut says transgender girls have been consistently winning track and field events and the policy violates federal protections for female athletes.” (Press, High School) The girls also feel demoralized because they are not in a fair competition. They feel they are not allowed a fair chance to prove they are the best, as it is known the transgender athlete will win.

Transgender athletes view this issue as a matter of equality. These individuals view participation in high school athletics as a right. They feel they should have the same opportunity to participate as other athletes. Transgender individuals do not believe they should be discriminated against for choosing their gender.

Transgender athletes feel they are protected by Title IX, they do not feel it solely protects natural-born females. The LGBTQ students believe they have the same rights as natural-born females to be free from sex discrimination in all activities, including athletics. “Discrimination based on a person’s gender identity, a person’s transgender status, or a person’s nonconformity to sex stereotypes constitutes discrimination based on sex.” (Transgender Female)

Transgender athletes also cite the mental health issues which arise from non being allowed to participate. The LGBTQ community believes denying these students the right to participate in sports as their chosen sex, can lead to anxiety, depression and puts them at risk for self-harm. They view inclusion as a preventive measure, “The most effective way to prevent them would be, from my perspective, through policy changes. Inclusive policies are necessary to advance equity.’ (Transgender Female) This community wants administrators need to create rules and policies to protect and aid transgender students in belonging and participating in all school activities, to ensure the transgender athlete’s mental health and wellness needs are met.

In looking at Title IX and its history, it was intended to protect natural born females and not transgender athletes. It’s basis is biological sex at birthb and not the altering of that state. The Justice Department recently filed a brief on this matter. “In Soule et al. v. Connecticut Association of Schools, Inc., et al., No. 3:20-cv-00201-RNC (D. Conn.), the Department of Justice stated Title IX’s prohibition of “sex” discrimination does not prohibit discrimination based on transgender status. In fact, the Justice Department believes allowing transgender athletes to participate might violate Title IX.” (Justice Department) The order believes courts, “should give the word its “ordinary, contemporary, common meaning” when Congress enacted Title IX in 1972”. When enacted, sex was defined solely as biological sex at birth, which does not include transgender.

Their view does have support. A July 2019 poll surveyed 2,200 U.S. adults on the issue of transgender girls. “Fifty-seven percent of U.S. adults said they agreed that transgender female athletes have a competitive advantage over cisgender female athletes, while 20 percent disagreed.” (Transgender Female) The study also showed the general public believes males are naturally stronger and faster than females.

Republican lawmakers in three states have proposed legislation to prohibit transgender athletes. The bills would not allow an athlete to compete in sports as the gender they chose to identify as. These bills have been introduced ahead of the legislative session for 2020. Their legislation would take away state and local funds from any school allowing transgender athletes to participate in their chosen gender.

Earlier this month, in Tennessee, State Rep. Bruce Griffey (R-Paris) introduced a bill (Tennessee House Bill HB1572) requiring schools which receive public funding ensure that students may only participate in sports based on the student’s biological sex as listed on the athlete’s “original” birth certificate. This bill, which is in the Tennessee State Legislature, would enact a law to impose career ending sanctions on school administrators who let transgender student athletes compete based on their gender identity. Their ruling would apply to both male and female athletics. Idaho Governor Brad Little signed into law the ‘Fairness in Women’s Sports Act’, House Bill 500 in March 2020. This legislation, the first of its kind in the United States, prohibits transgender athletes from competing in sports consistent with their gender identity; they must compete as the sex at the time of birth.

There is a large emphasis on the unfairness, especially males who transgender. It is shown they have a more distinct advantage. “People who are physiologically male at birth have myriad advantages on the playing field; differences in muscle mass, skeletal structures, and hormonal biology persist after medical and surgical gender transition.” (Bloche) Even with hormone replacement the male testosterone is at a “higher level in transgender male to female athletes”. (Department) A Journal of Medical Ethics study stated healthy transgender male to female subjects “did not lose significant muscle mass (or power)”. (Knox) They are not truly a female, even with hormones and testosterone inhibiting pharmaceuticals. “Science demonstrates that high testosterone and other male physiology provides a performance advantage in sport, suggesting that trans-women retain some of that advantage.” (Knox) The science strengthens the arguments stating transgender athletes should not be allowed to compete in their chosen gender. “A boy who was born as a boy, but self-identifies as a girl has an advantage to girls who were born as girls.” (Tony)

The study revealed transgender males maintain their musculature through training. It indicates muscle memory helps the muscle retention. The study concluded opposite sex hormones given after the onset of puberty didn’t alter the effects of testosterone on the body. “Essentially, this study concludes that men who “transition” by taking testosterone suppressant can rejuvenate whatever muscle mass, strength, and power they may lose initially through proper training.” (Knox) This study shows you cannot really level the playing field between females and transgender males, the transgender male to female athlete will biologically have a competitive advantage that cannot be significantly altered. There are no regulations on how low the testosterone level has to be in a male who transgenders to female, furthering the advantage to males who identify as females.

Currently, the rules and regulations for transgender athletes are not in sync and take many sides and approaches. There are eight states that have policies dictating the student athlete must play on a male or female sports team based on the sex on their birth certificate. Three other states, Missouri, Georgia, and Washington State, are all considering similar legislation. Two states make exceptions based on how far along in the process of transgenderism an athlete is, and others decide on a case by case basis. Three states allow the athlete to choose the sex they want to compete as in athletics, while many ignore it and have no policies. A few states allow each school district to make its own regulations.

The transgender debate has negative consequences for cisgender male and female athletes even before competition begins. The transgender athletes may take the place on a team from a cisgender athlete. This may be due to competition or schools that may feel forced to take the transgender athletes side to avoid the perception of discrimination.

National regulation will eliminate the inconsistent policies and allow for fair athletic competition. In the current environment, females who are competing against males who transgender to females, do not have the opportunity to obtain important personal bests and are missing out on state competition and titles. These are vital for those females hoping to receive athletic scholarships. They are competing against females in states where transgender athletes are not allowed to participate, those females can appear to be stronger athletes. Scholarships are easily influenced by who makes the podium and wins the awards. National regulation will also protect the premise of Title IX as developed. National policy will keep the very definition of sex as a natural-born male and female, this should not be redefined or changed.

Although it may seem discriminatory, there needs to be policy against participation by transgender athletes. This will allow Title IX to function as enacted and allow athletes to compete fairly. Transgender athletes could still compete as their natural born gender, so they will have the same opportunity. The surge in recent bills and laws shows the desire to accomplish this. Without a national policy, there will be continued inequity, unfair competition and potential loss of titles and scholarships for some athletes.

Title IX – the best document for the progression of female athletics… more like the beginning of increased criticism, setbacks and discouragement for women in sports. Since Title IX, which states “No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance”, became law the opportunities for women have exponentially grown in numbers. However, behind the impressive increasing number of women athletes and teams remain the underlying challenges women face in terms of gaining equality within athletics. Initial issues of implementation have carried over to modern-day where Title IX continues to face problems. These inequalities originate with the uneven distribution of coverage within the media compared to male athletes and men’s sports. Aside from championship games and the Olympics, women continue to demand more coverage within their individual sports. Although the prominence of women’s teams has increased, especially at the collegiate level, women fail to dominate the coaching positions of these teams. Additionally, while reporting such sports, commentators tend to use gendered language to describe the activities performed by the athletes, denoting that they are female. The implication of Title IX has provided many benefits for women across the world, yet various issues surrounding women’s sports remain a problem today like the lack of media coverage, male dominated coaching positions and gendered language within reporting. These features, along with a couple more, may continue into the future, where women could be subject to face inequality despite Title IX implementation.

Title IX can be described as a document passed in 1972, in hopes of providing equal opportunities to both males and females in any educational program at a “federally funded institution”. An institution risks losing such federal funding if they are unable to or fail to comply to the regulations of Title IX. From the 1950s to the early 1970s, the Civil Rights and feminists movements dominated much of society, which had a great influence on the implementation of Title IX. This law extended significantly to sport, where women at the time remained exceptionally far behind their male counterparts in terms of participation and equalit. The Department of Health, Education and Welfare (HEW) remained responsible for clarifying that Title IX should be applied to intercollegiate athletics, to which Congress eventually ratified. Since the initial implementation of the document, there has since been several extensions to ensure clarification and precision. Although several extensions and clarifications have been made over time regarding Title IX, there proved to be several issues that were present when initially enacted.

With the passage of Title IX in 1972, the presence of female athletes at the college level has skyrocketed compared to numbers prior to the law. There remains little debate over the increase of participation, as only 300,000 women engaged in collegiate athletics the year before Title IX and today over 3 million females enjoy the privilege to play sports at the college level. Title IX focused on encouraging school administrations to work toward gender equality in athletic spending and equality in opportunity for both males and females, resulting in increased participation and available scholarships for women at the collegiate level. However, several initial issues of implementation prevailed.

In terms of modern-day issues surrounding Title IX, we continue to see unequal coverage of men’s and women’s athletics, inequality amongst coaching positions and differences in how male and female sports are broadcasted. First, various studies have been performed on the topic of coverage for athletics, with statistics highlighting such inequality from the media. For example, 72.7% of the stories in college newspapers cover male athletes and events, with college television operations devoting 81.5% of their airtime to male sports stories and highlights. Although this specific study notes when female athletes were covered, the quality of coverage remained equal to that of men, there was no difference in the average number of words per story and the length of the broadcasts were equivalent among men and women. Regardless, a huge disparity remains prevalent in the quantity of coverage, indicating campus media falls into the same category on how they portray female athletics. Consequently, female athletes on college campuses receive less attention, receive fewer attendees at their games or events and often lower funding due to the lack of media coverage. With the little coverage women do receive within the media, the stories that arise about females are based on ‘sex-appropriate’ sports and fail to recognize more aggressive and ‘masculine’ sports played by women.

Female athlete media coverage focuses little on the “athlete” and their achievements, but more on the individual’s appearance. Based on a study in 1988 performed on sport media coverage, women “are continually portrayed in ways that link them to oppressive stereotypes of women’s so-called frailty, sexuality, and limited physical capacity”. In this regard, female athletes prove to more often be portrayed off the court or field without a uniform on and in highly sexualized poses. Such sexualized media coverage directly correlates to gendered sports, with female ‘appropriate’ sports including ones such as figure skating, tennis and soccer. Mass media reflects gender expectations driven by societal beliefs and values. Therefore, the amount of coverage females receive often depends on the type of sport in which athletes compete in. This idea is highlighted throughout the study performed by Kane et al., television coverage analyzed throughout the 1992 Olympic Games shows women who participate in individual sports, many of which are considered ‘sex-appropriate’ sports, like gymnastics and tennis, were provided with more air time than females who participated in team sports, like volleyball or basketball. The stigma that surrounds gendered specific sports correlate to the ways in which the media chooses to cover such events, often choosing to undermine the significance of those sports perceived as ‘male dominated’. In response, women are often discouraged from the lack of media coverage, or often negative media coverage, and in term face stereotypes based on the sports they participate in.

Not only do women continue to face inequality based on media coverage, but also in terms of coaching, as male primarily dominated this occupation. Within both male and female sports, men primarily serve as the heads of teams, often coaching amongst a heavily dominated male staff. These trends fail to only be seen within more aggressive sports, both also sports that are deemed more ‘feminine,’ like gymnastics and figure skating, as male coaches remain prominent. Specifically, “the percentage of women coached by women has declined to an all-time low, even while Title IX, which prohibits sex-based discrimination in any education program or activity that receives federal dollars, has dramatically increased participation numbers for female athletes”. Pilon (2015) highlights how 90% of women’s college teams were coached by women in the year Title IX became law and by 2012 this number had dropped to 42.9%. This dramatic decrease in female coaches may be the result of males being drawn into increased money flowing into women’s sports and those looking to eventually ‘move up’ into coaching within male leagues. Additionally, these significant statistics continue to discourage women from entering coaching professions, which prove to be a male-dominated occupation. Not only do women’s sports teams fail to have primarily female coaches, but male sports teams contain even fewer female staff members.

Although both the lack of media coverage and the absence of female coaches remain two prominent factors that contribute to the ongoing inequalities women face within sports, gendered language within reporting also highlight such boundaries females encounter in sport. Both males and females experience gendered language, meaning specific words being used to enforce and denote an individual’s gender while participating in athletics. Both men’s and women’s sports are reported with different tones, adjectives and language overall. Specifically, reporters and commentators use more ‘dainty’ and ‘pretty’ terms when discussing women’s sports, yet use ‘tough’ and ‘aggressive’ words to describe the actions male athletes undergo. Research performed by Billings based on 66 regular season NCAA men’s and women’s basketball games examined language choices used by reporters to describe female and male athletes. For female athletes, some phrases used to describe women include, “just not ready for this kind of competition” and “necessity was the mother of invention for her”. Meanwhile, ‘Kryptonite’, ‘savior’ and ‘messiah’ were used to describe male athletes’ activity and performance. Women are often regarded as ‘motherly figures’, focusing on how their roles off the field remain more important than their achievements on the field. Meanwhile, powerful terms used to describe men reinforce their status both on and off the field.

The lack of media coverage, male dominated coaching positions and gendered language within reporting of women’s sports serve as crucial examples of how challenges remain present for women within athletics, regardless of the development of the document Title IX in 1972. Although the law has helped to enact numerous new girls and women’s programs and teams nationwide at the collegiate and professional level, there remain several areas that are unable to catch up with these dramatic increases in female opportunity in sport. With media coverage primarily focusing on male athletes, their achievements and performance, female athletes fall behind the spotlight and are rather depicted for their appearance and body type. Secondly, males prove to dominate coaching positions amongst both male and female athletic teams, with women continuously discouraged from entering coaching occupations. Lastly, gendered language used by reporters, like aggressive terms to describe males and dainty words to depict females, becomes a significant factor in sport by judging an individual based on other regards than athletic ability. Title IX has opened the doors for women in sports and has garnered much support for its positive impacts on athletics, yet the law fails to address all issues that women face within athletics due to gender. The discouragement and belittlement of female athletes will keep women’s sports where they stand today, yet strength, dedication and praise remain the necessary motives for forward progress in women’s athletics.