Women In Sports: Gender Inequalities And Violation Of Title IX Law

I chose the topic of women's sport discrimination. Recently, Alize Cornet was charged with a code violation when removing her shirt after she had noticed it was backwards at a tennis match last week against Serena Williams. Shortly after, French officials addressed Serena about her outfit, saying that her tight-fitting outfit could not be worn during the French Open in respect for the sport and place. There are many women and men college sports today and their attire are not treated equal which is a violation to Title IX.

While some say the law is a necessary action for women sports, others argue that its aa unequal system that punishes male athletes. While it's okay for a male to wear the attire of his choice, it's frowned upon when a woman does it. Gender equality is a current issue that has been impacting women for years.

In this article written by Alan Dawson, French Officials addressed Alize Cornet and Serena Williams about their outfit selection.

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While french officials argue that the athletes should show respect, Cornet argues that men are not treated this way and she should not have to apologize for her actions. This article proves that gender equality isn't the same even in other countries. "you have to respect the game and the place. " (Giudicelli,2018) Myre, G. (2016, August 04). U. S. Women Will Rule In Rio (You Can Thank Title IX).

In this article written by Greg Myre, he highlights the importance of women olympic sports. Over the past few years female sports such as rowing, basketball and soccer have received more medals than men in the past olympics.

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Female athletes started receiving athletic scholarships for college. The rise in women sports has lead to the greater prominence of women in everyday life. This article provides evidence that if you give women a chance to do something, they can do it just as well as men, if not better. “What the history of Title IX shows us is that if you provide women with quality sports opportunities, they'll come and they'll excel,” (Hogshead-Makar,2018)

In this article written by John Pearson, he talks about school systems having to cut down on male sports because of Title IX. Sports such as swimming, diving and basketball are being eliminated in order to meet the requirements of Title IX. He argues that men sports shouldn't have to sacrifice their sports to satisfy women’s sports. The school systems that use common sense for equality of sports instead of using a 50/50 quota get fined by the Title IX law. This article provides the other side of the argument that defends men and protects the loss of their sports. “Perhaps when more women are in higher office, a more sensible policy will be implemented to achieve athletic equality between the sexes. ” (Pearson, 2018)

In this article written by Marie Andrusewicz, she talks about how the University of Tennessee Settles Sexual Assault Lawsuit. The lawsuit states that the University violated the Title IX law by creating a hostile sexual environment. Six women claimed that athletes that were responsible for assault got away with no punishment. While the male athletes got away with no punishment, the University is enforcing new policies against rape. This article provides proof of male athletes taking advantage of women which exemplifies male athletes can get away with more things with no consequences. Casselbury, K. (2017, September 11). Gender Discrimination in Sports.

In this article written by Kelsey Casselbury, she provides statistics that prove male athletes get more money in scholarships than women every year. She states Title IX and its significance as well as the value of women’s sports. This article provides information that explains different ways that males are more of a priority than women sports. Recent statistics prove male athletes get more athletic scholarships than women. This article provides numerical evidence of gender inequality. “According to the Women’s Sports Foundation, male athletes get $179 million more in athletic scholarships each year than females do. ” (Casselbury, 2018) “In men’s sports, gender is almost never mentioned. ” (Casselbury,2018) “No matter how toughened a sportswoman may be, her organism is not cut out to sustain certain shocks. ” (Coubertin, 1896)

Refutation Gender equality in sports provides too much power to women athletes and leads to a decrease of funding men’s sportsFor many years’ men have been dominating women in sports. In 1972, President Richard M. Nixon created a law that prohibits discrimination in activities and federal funds. This law is referred to as Title IX. Because of the new law, many male sports are being removed to develop female sports. Male sports are becoming less of a priority and they shouldn’t have to sacrifice their sports or funding to please female athletes. Men are starting to receive less scholarships and financial aid to make it equal for all athletes.

Recently, a lot of women have been participating in more sports due to the passing of the Title IX law. But unfortunately, the more women participate, the more males lose. Men have been dominating everything until the late 20th century. When women started coming into the picture that domination mind set changed. The same thing is happening today with more women starting to participate in sports. Before the Title IX law many women were only allowed to participate in cheerleading and dance team. Soon after the law was passed, women realized the many new opportunities they had. These new discoveries left men sports to a disadvantage. For example, more than 400 men sports were eliminated to meet the requirements for the NCAA complaint. “Rice college doesn't have a varsity men's swimming, soccer, or volleyball team. These are sports offered to women, but not men. Some say this is a direct effect of Title IX. ” (Keating, 2018)In the mid-1970s, scholarship limits came into effect around the same time Title IX was established. The law was originally written to avoid using federal money to support discrimination. While it was successful in many areas of academics it caused many college athletes to suffer. Since then, many scholarships are becoming more limited to male athletes. The NCAA believed many football teams were hoarding players with financial aid so in response, the NCAA tried to ensure some equality between participation in sports. While women are receiving more funding, it must come from somewhere. The money that comes from football goes directly to women sports. While the number of women college sports teams have doubled over the past 20 years, men’s teams are consistently decreasing. Today, the number of scholarships offered to women are dramatically higher than men. For example, women’s Equestrian offers 15 scholarships and men 0. The same applies to women’s rugby, bowling, field hockey and rowing. Men receive 0 scholarships for those sports and they receive less scholarships than woman in multiple other sports including basketball and volleyball.

“For some equivalency sports, there are also limits on the number of players who can get any fraction of a scholarship -- also known as "counters. " Baseball teams, for example, can have a maximum of 27 counters; women's ice hockey teams can have 30. ” (Keating, 2018) In conclusion, the rise of gender equality in sports has led to a disadvantage for men. Men dominated for years in sports and now women are slowly taking over. Athletic scholarship opportunities are decreasing for men as time continues. Male athletes have worked hard to accomplish what they have today and that shouldn’t be taken away.

I have been a fan of the National Tennis Association for years and I look up to the women athletes who participate in it. As an athletic female college student, it is important to me that there is equality in every aspect of sports. I am writing to you today in regards of Serina Williams. Recently I heard about how you banned her catsuit outfit being worn during the French Open. I personally believe that women should not be judged or discriminated by the clothes they are wearing. Have you ever addressed Rafael Nadal about his tight-fitting shirts or undesirably short shorts? Before making a comment on a women’s choice of clothing it’s important to view the other side. I believe women should be able to express who they are through their clothing. It’s hard to fit in the society we are living in today as a woman and calling people us out just makes it worse. I was informed that you are enforcing a new dress code due to the incident. But how much difference will that make? Women are not going to stop expressing who they are just because someone told them they couldn’t wear a certain thing. From my understanding, you are enforcing the new code because “one must respect the game and place. ” Serina didn’t wear the attire she did to disrespect the sport. She strictly wore it for medical purposes and to feel empowered. She gave birth to her daughter last year, but a life-threatening crisis had occurred six short days later.

Blood clots formed in her lungs which nearly killed her. The purpose of her tight-fitting suit was to keep the blood circulation flowing when she was playing. She had no intention to disrespect the culture or sport itself, it was for her own medical benefit. Aside from her catsuit, sources are suggesting that the reason for the new dress code is because of the color of Serina’s skin. I have no proof of that, but if that is the reason, I believe that if you want to receive respect than you must demonstrate respect for others. As I address you today I am defending all the women that have ever been judged on their appearances. Women are special and unique in every way and nothing should interfere with that. More than half of women today are self-consciences of how they appear. We try so hard to fit in so that we may feel powerful and indestructible against others negativity. I ask you to reconsider enforcing a dress code because it restricts women in expressing who they are. It also restricts women from preventing physical injuries by not being able to wear clothes that help them. If a near death experience happened to you that kept you from doing what you love and the only way for you to be able to continue your passion was to wear a certain piece of clothing, would you do it? How would you feel if someone prohibited it? This is just a few things to consider when enforcing new rules before much consideration. Thank you for your time.

Works cited

  1. Dawson, A. (2018, August 30). French tennis chief slams 'black and white' Alize Cornet shirt ban that sparked sexism row at US Open. Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/french-open-tennis-chief-says-alize-cornet-wont-be-punished-for-taking-off-shirt-2018-8
  2. Myre, G. (2016, August 04). U. S. Women Will Rule In Rio (You Can Thank Title IX). NPR. https://www.npr.org/2016/08/04/487640242/u-s-women-will-rule-in-rio-you-can-thank-title-ix
  3. Hogshead-Makar, N. (2018, June 23). Gender inequality in college sports: Men still dominating on and off the field. The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/gender-inequality-in-college-sports-men-still-dominating-on-and-off-the-field-99123
  4. Pearson, J. (2018, February 13). Title IX and men's sports: Are men being treated fairly? ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/title-ix-and-mens-sports-792633
  5. Andrusewicz, M. (2018, February 1). University of Tennessee Settles Sexual Assault Lawsuit. Inside Higher Ed. https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2018/02/01/university-tennessee-settles-sexual-assault-lawsuit
  6. Casselbury, K. (2017, September 11). Gender Discrimination in Sports. Verywell Fit. https://www.verywellfit.com/gender-discrimination-in-sports-3119417
  7. Women’s Sports Foundation. (n.d.). The History of Title IX. https://www.womenssportsfoundation.org/education/title-ix-and-issues-in-equality/the-history-of-title-ix/
  8. Sports Illustrated Staff. (2021, March 8). A Brief History of the Fight for Women's Equality in Athletics. Sports Illustrated. https://www.si.com/olympics/2021/03/08/womens-equality-sports-title-ix-anniversary
  9. Battaglia, C. (2021, April 26). Why women’s sports are still second class. The Lily. https://www.thelily.com/why-womens-sports-are-still-second-class/
  10. Lopiano, D. (2018, July 2). Title IX has no requirement for quotas, just equal opportunity. The Hill. https://thehill.com/opinion/civil-rights/395511-title-ix-has-no-requirement-for-quotas-just-equal-opportunity
  11. National Women’s Law Center. (n.d.). Title IX: Protecting Students from Sex Discrimination. https://nwlc.org/resources/title-ix-protecting-students-from-sex-discrimination/
Updated: Feb 18, 2024
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Women In Sports: Gender Inequalities And Violation Of Title IX Law. (2024, Feb 18). Retrieved from https://studymoose.com/women-in-sports-gender-inequalities-and-violation-of-title-ix-law-essay

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