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It’s becoming increasingly difficult to find a political issue that unites Americans. But there’s at least one that generates common ground: protecting women’s sports. Overwhelmingly, polls indicate that a majority of Americans, from both ends of the political spectrum, don’t believe allowing stronger, faster men in women’s competitions and intimate spaces is fair to women and girls.
On Monday, June 23, as we celebrate the 53rd anniversary of Title IX, we join Americans across the country in continuing the fight to secure the sex-based protections we uniquely need as women: the right to compete in equal, sex-segregated athletic programs, to access female-only intimate spaces, and to be shielded from sexual harassment.
Before its passage in 1972, the opportunity to compete – or to be recognized in athletics – was rare for women and girls. Fewer than 32,000 women played collegiate sports, and less than 300,000 girls played high school sports. On top of that, women did not have equal access to scholarships or academic programs.
RILEY GAINES: TITLE IX WAS MEANT TO PROTECT WOMEN, NOT ERASE US
Even after the initial passage, progress was slow. The most recognized sports association today – the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) – did not begin recognizing women’s volleyball as a championship sport until 1981, over a decade after the first men’s championship. The NCAA also recognized the women’s softball championship that same year, whereas the first men’s baseball championship took place in 1947.
Over 3 million girls in America play high school sports today, and over 222,000 play collegiate sports. But this was not always the case. Powerhouse athletes like basketball star Caitlin Clark and Olympic gymnast Simone Biles, who have made a career off of their athletic prowess, were able to ascend to professional sports because of the groundwork laid by Title IX.
While common sense has won in the court of public opinion, ideological insanity continues to prevail in athletic competitions across the country. For example, just a few weeks ago, a male once again made headlines for stealing first place in a girls’ track meet in California.
The good news is that we no longer have a president in the White House who will bend the knee and allow these egregious situations to continue without consequences. Under President Donald Trump’s leadership, the U.S. Department of Education has taken a firm stance in favor of common sense. From the start, this administration has sought to safeguard women under federal education civil rights law by quickly ending the Biden-era unlawful interpretation of Title IX and, once again, championing equal opportunity protections on the basis of biological sex. President Trump reiterated those protections by issuing an executive order to ban men from women’s sports, and the Department has enforced that directive with vigor.
The Department has also made it clear that states are not permitted to discriminate against girls in sports by allowing men to compete, steal titles and victories, and place female athletes in physical danger. Take Payton McNabb, for example, who suffered substantial injuries to her head and neck from the high velocity of a volleyball spiked, not by a fellow female competitor, but by a much-stronger male.
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This is unacceptable.
In response to these clear dangers for female athletes, who are protected by federal law, the Trump administration has launched investigations into California, Maine, and other states for alleged violations. Together with the U.S. Department of Justice, the Department is expediting investigations into schools and universities for short-changing female athletes and violating Title IX. From the California Interscholastic Foundation to the Minnesota State High School League to the University of Maryland, these agencies are working together to preserve Title IX and ensure women are not subjected to unfair competition with men. States that do not follow the law are at risk of losing federal funding if they insist on continuing to trample women’s civil rights.
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This Title IX anniversary will not be marred by an interpretation that disrespects the rights of women and girls in favor of the feelings of male athletes. Rather, we will be celebrating the athletic accomplishments of women across the country.
As a woman who played unorganized sports before Title IX and a woman who endured the Biden administration’s abuses of Title IX, we both know the importance of having a law in place that empowers women. We are on the side of the vast majority of Americans who agree that what women in sports have had to endure for the past several years is absurd and unfair. Women deserve access to fair and safe competition, and under the Trump administration, their voices are finally being heard.
Payton McNabb is a sports ambassador for Independent Women and former three-sport high school athlete who turned tragedy into triumph after a traumatic brain injury ended her athletic future.
Linda McMahon currently serves as the 13th U.S. secretary of Education. She previously served in President Donald Trump’s cabinet as the administrator of the Small Business Administration.
