Tara VanDerveer has been the head women’s basketball coach at Stanford University since 1985. She once compared the world of women’s sports before 1972 to a family dinner table where the boys were served steaks and the girls were served cold hot dogs without buns or even ketchup.
And quite frankly, girls only got the “benefit” of cold hot dogs if there was any money leftover after buying all the steaks — often, there wasn’t.
She wasn’t exaggerating. Prior to 1972, there were virtually no college scholarships available for women to play sports. Women were lucky if they even had a sports team at their schools. If they did, it was often comparable to a cold, bunless, ketchupless hot dog. No locker rooms, low-quality uniforms (if any), old and unsafe training equipment (often passed down from the men’s teams), no travel stipends, absurdly early or late practice times to accommodate the men’s more reasonable and fuller schedules, and no championship opportunities or divisions. It’s no surprise that only 1 in every 27 girls played sports.
Title IX, the 1972 federal law barring discrimination on the basis of sex in education, changed everything. It required that men and women receive equitable educational opportunities. Although Title IX also applies to all aspects of federally funded education, its spotlight has really lit up women’s sports.
Today, 2 in 5 college women play sports, thanks in large part to Title IX.
Given the history behind Title IX and how it was passed specifically to protect girls and women from a system that favored boys and men, it’s appalling that the ACLU and other organizations are now trying to undo Title IX so that a transgender girl can simply steal the steak from the biological girl seated across the table, leaving her with nothing.
Nineteen states in our country allow biological males who self-identify as women to play on women’s sports teams in schools. This means biological boys, with all the advantages of the male body, are being allowed to steal athletic opportunities from biological girls in multiple ways.
When a transgender girl takes a spot on a women’s sports team, that’s one less biological girl who can play on the team and enjoy all the benefits sports offer. Moreover, when transgender girls compete on a girls sports team, against other girls, it’s extremely difficult to beat them. After puberty, boys have a biological advantage over girls, whether or not they’re taking hormone treatment. Boys are bigger. They have more muscle mass and muscle strength, and they have larger bones and greater cardiovascular capacity. That makes it nearly impossible for the fastest girl on a sports team to beat even an average boy.
And when transgender girls wins, as they generally will, they are stealing a podium spot, athletic opportunities, scholarship money, recruitment opportunities and all the benefits of playing on a team from biological girls. This sounds a lot like girls sports before 1972, but this is happening today.
In March 2020, Idaho became the first state in the nation to pass a Fairness in Women’s Sports law, explicitly stating that biological males cannot play on girls sports teams regardless of their gender self-identification and regardless of whether they are taking feminizing hormones. This seems like common sense to the average person — not even a discussion worth having. But radical activists at the ACLU immediately sued Idaho, arguing that boys can be girls and that by keeping them off girls sports teams, Idaho is discriminating against … girls, of all things.
The federal Department of Education got involved last month, arguing that allowing transgender girls to play on girls sports teams is fundamentally unfair and denies girls “athletic benefits and opportunities, including advancing to the final events, higher-level competitions, awards, medals, recognition, and the possibility of greater visibility to colleges and other benefits.”
The department rightfully clarified that allowing transgender girls to compete on girls sports teams was discrimination against biological girls and essentially defeats the spirit and purpose of Title IX.
It’s not yet clear where our Supreme Court will stand on this issue. In Bostock v. Clayton County, the court recently ruled that transgender individuals, in certain employment contexts, are protected against discrimination on the basis of their gender identity. But the court repeatedly noted that its decision was limited to employment contexts. Title IX could still be saved.
Last week marked the beginning of the #SaveGirlsSports social media campaign raising national awareness and action to celebrate how far women’s opportunities have come under Title IX. If you want to participate in the #SaveGirlsSports Campaign, post photos on social media of yourself or female athletes you know using the hashtag #SaveGirlsSports. Tell the story of why you love sports and how girls and women’s sports have inspired and motivated you.
We can make a powerful stand together to let America know female athletes deserve to compete fairly on their own sports teams. Female athletes deserve to be protected. Idaho may be the first state to save girls sports, but with your help, it won’t be the last!
Stephanie Curry, an attorney and mother, serves as the Manager of Public Policy with Family Policy Alliance.
