Title IX and the Crisis of Boyhood

When I was teaching public speaking last summer, one of my students was interested in focusing on Title IX in her policy speech. In the policy speech assignment, students are expected to propose a policy plan that addresses an issue that they argue is in urgent need of addressing. I get plenty of repetitive topic proposals - the 'obesity epidemic,' banning smoking in public, alternative energy sources, etc. - but gender-related issues are not often on the radar (unless, of course, we count the ol' abortion speech). Title IX especially is one of those topics that doesn't even register with students born around 1990. I was quite surprised, then, when a female student wanted to speak to this relic of gendered legal battles, and what's more, she was sincerely invested in its repeal.

It turned out that this student's interest in Title IX sprung from a funding issue with her brother's high school sports team (I believe it was track), and she argued that her brother's championship team deserved the monies that allegedly went instead to a women's sports team in their high school. The boys, she insisted, were victims of reverse discrimination.

A female student opposes Title IX. I certainly do not want to implicate this student (or others - I once had an African American student who fervently opposed affirmative action policies) as ignorant or apathetic, nor would I want to squash the possibilities for radical activism. However, I must wonder aloud when the multiple crises of boyhood and masculinity will begin to tone down a bit? I just cannot buy into these concerns, as someone who finds the death grip on traditional gender roles materially comprehensible, but realistically in need of lightening up.

I'll end with this: what did my student actually find in her research on Title IX? It's difficult to say, as most of the argument revolved around this case study of her brother's experience. What should we know about this law that has serious implications for the way girls get to participate in all educational programs (that's right - it's not just about sports!)? This info page from the Women's Sports Foundation is a good place to start.

Photo from the blog friedbrains.com (not an endorsement of the blogger's politics, but the perspective on this issue is worth checking out)