By Aleska Washington
In a recent decision, the Supreme Court ruled that retaliation is intentional discrimination on the basis of sex and, therefore, violates Title IX. The Supreme Court supports the right of a coach to report Title IX violations and, if retaliated against, to sue his or her institution under Title IX. It was a 5-4 decision with dissenters saying Coach Roderick Jackson shouldn't be able to sue unless he suffered discrimination himself under Title IX (meaning he wasn't an athlete protected by Title IX). The Supreme Court found that the victim of retaliation need not be a victim of the sex discrimination that is the subject of the original complaint. Thus, teachers and coaches who complain on behalf of their student-athletes are protected from sex discrimination. This case was about a male coach who got fired because he tried to get the same facilities and treatment for the girls he coached that the boys had long enjoyed. A lower court said that he couldn't sue as a whistleblower because the word “retaliation” didn't appear in the statute.
“The Women's Sports Foundation, which submitted an amicus brief in this case, applauds the decision of the Supreme Court to uphold a coach's right to sue his or her institution if the school retaliates against him or her for standing up for the rights of his players under Title IX. A coach should not lose his or her job or be penalized in any way because he or she brings Title IX sex discrimination violations to the attention of the school or college. Score a win for social justice!” said Women's Sports Foundation President Dominique Dawes.
Nancy Hogshead-Makar, professor at the Florida Coastal School of Law, Olympic champion and author of the Women's Sports Foundation's amicus brief, said, “I am proud to have been a team member of this significant win, and I'm hopeful that this decision will empower coaches to be terrific advocates for young girls and women, and fulfill the promise of Title IX: true gender-equity in athletics.”