underlying factors of title IX

 When talking about Title IX, I noticed the large focus on the benefits despite the underlying issues. When four women of color who were hired as trainers were mentioned, I thought of the underlying issues and stereotypes in America that commonly placed women of color in roles of caring for more privileged people around them, then being unable to care as much as they would like for their own home. Women of color predominantly had to work outside of their homes, many times for more white people, and could this be an underlying motivation as to why women of color were chosen, their possible families not taken into consideration as needing to be cared for as they commonly are with white women. American propaganda and media’s depiction of women of color differently than white women enforced stereotypes of women of color being less feminine compared to society’s ideals of a feminine white upper-middle-class homemaker. Some argue against women coaching is that it takes women away from looking after kids at home, and while this is inherently based on our Western patriarchial societal standards, I wonder if it was easier for some to accept the idea of women of color as coaches because they were less respected by American society as homemakers like white women. 

Branching off of this, stereotypes of women throughout history overall placed them in a subservient role of doing things for others, commonly at the expense of oneself. The consistent view of women as caregivers with men not naturally having this ability is harmful to all. In the medical field, women are more likely to be nurses, deemed a caregiving role, with doctors, who have more authority and make the final decision, more likely to be men. While women are involved, those with the most authority in the end are men. This is like what we saw with women's sports after Title IX, where while women have been increasingly hired as assistant coaches and other positions, the head coaches are primarily men. 

While many look back on Title IX as a great leap forward, I can't help but think of the many shortcomings that show how performative equality does not deal with equitability. Title IX was made to apply to any organization receiving federal funding, with the penalty of noncompliance being a withdrawal of this money, however, as of 2019, an estimated 80-90% of all educational institutions are not in compliance with Title IX, and no federal money has been withdrawn. It seems as though Title IX acted like a bandaid, legally “fixing” discrimination on some levels and in a simplistic public eye, while not actually following through to the greatest extent and perpetrating other issues like the incredible pay gap and patterns of hiring. Even while Title IX worked to address women’s participation on the field and in the classroom, and women’s sports did grow, it did not address the systemic issues women face building careers in a male-dominated industry.