By Terri Lakowski
Women Denied Access to Equitable Facilities
A father contacted the Foundation for advice in how to improve the facilities and conditions of his daughter’s high school softball team. The women currently play on a field that has “ankle-threatening holes in the outfield, weeds in the infield, no restrooms and is poorly watered and cared for” compared to the baseball field with “restrooms, snack stand, lights, field covers, advertisers on the outfield fence, announcing booth and a working scoreboard.” The father says that the differences between the softball and baseball field are representative of the disparities in facilities between the women’s and men’s teams at the school. The Advocacy Department explained that schools have an obligation to provide comparable facilities for their male and female athletes. We sent him
Playing Fair, a resource that explains Title IX rules and regulations to help athletes, coaches, parents and others better analyze their school’s athletic programs; and
A Step by Step Guide to Gender Equity, a resource that gives activists a detailed, step-by-step plan for achieving gender equity. We suggested that he work within the school channels to pursue a Title IX complaint.
Female Athletes Attacked During School Competition
Three members of a middle school (School A) track team were attacked when using the rest room at another school (School B) during one of their meets. According to one concerned parent, a number of male students prevented the girls from exiting the restroom, and when one girl became scared and tried to push the door open, she was picked up by a male student and slammed repeatedly into a wall. More specific details of the incident are unknown, because according to this parent, the three girls involved were told by a school official that “if they told anyone about the incident they would never play sports in the school district again.”
The attack of the female track players was not the first incident that occurred at School B. The previous year, members of School A’s basketball team were attacked by a group of spectators from School B after a close game. Parents and other spectators were able to restrain the fans from harming the girls. After this incident, the school promised that no team from School A would return to School B for competition. However, as the case of the track team demonstrated, School A did not uphold its promise. A father contacted the Advocacy Department for assistance in what he considers a pattern of neglect and mistreatment of the female athletes at School A. The attack of the middle school track athletes he said is just one of many examples of the school’s disregard for its female athletes. In addition to safety, he identified other Title IX issues relating to facilities, equipment and supplies, coaching and publicity. The Advocacy Department is currently working with this father and a collaborating attorney to address this situation.
School Refuses to Showcase Female Athlete
A high school senior recently contacted the Women’s Sports Foundation after her athletic director refused to showcase her state wrestling championship trophy in the school’s trophy case. According to this student, the athletic director said that the trophy case holds only awards earned from school-sponsored competition. (While this athlete competes on the school’s wrestling team, this women’s state tournament is not a school-sponsored event because the state does not offer a tournament only for women). Men’s trophies from non-school sponsored events are in the trophy case. The Advocacy Department is working with this student to ensure that the school upholds its obligations under Title IX to equally support and showcase the accomplishments of its male and female students.
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