Task Force Media Notes, June 10

This is part of a series of regular reports to update, inform, educate and stimulate public discussion

20/20 EXPOSES THE UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES OF TITLE IX

In the most compelling national coverage of the Title IX issue to date, the popular ABC News program 20/20 broadcast a lengthy feature during its show on Friday, May 29th.

The segment was entitled øThe End of Sports in Schools? Legislation that Discriminates Against MenÓ and was narrated by John Stossel. The piece took an in-depth look at the problems associated with the enforcement of Title IX. This is a must-see for anybody who wants to fully understand the issue.

A look at the transcript for the show reflects the tremendous cost to menƒs programs that Title IX has caused. From the start, Stossel explained how menƒs programs have been gutted to achieve gender equity quotas.

* John Stossel: øBut it is expensive to add teams. And many women just donƒt want to play varsity sports. So schools, partly in fear of equality lawsuits, have started dropping menƒs sports.Ó

One of the main speakers in the piece is Leo Kocher, the head wrestling coach at the Univ. of Chicago, and co-chairperson of the Joint Task Force to Protect Wrestling. Kocher covered a number of important issues in the show, including:

* øIn the last five years, we have lost 10 percent of our male athletes. Thatƒs 20,000 males. Every team that has males on it is in danger of being dropped.Ó

* øIf you look at an intramural field, where anybody who wants to play gets a chance to play, youƒll find that thereƒs three males to every female on those intramural fields.Ó

The 20/20 segment took special notice of the situation at Merritt Island High School in Florida, where a Title IX lawsuit forced the school to turn off the scoreboard, shut down the concession stand and press box and rope off the bleachers on the boys baseball field.

Stossel asked the Daniels sisters, the girls softball players who filed the lawsuit, what they felt about the outcome of the decision. According to the transcript:

* Jennifer Daniels: øWe were really upset about the whole thing because they took it the wrong way.Ó

* John Stossel: øThe twins say they didnƒt file the suit to hurt the boys.Ó

* Jennifer Daniels: øThat was never our intention. It just really made us mad.Ó

* Jessica Daniels: øYeah. It just didnƒt seem fair. Even though it would be equal, it just didnƒt seem fair.Ó

The 20/20 piece also explained that Title IX is not just about sports, but could be enforced in all educational programs with gender imbalance. They explained how it could be applied to dance, chorus, student govenment, yearbook and engineering.

ABC News should be applauded for having the courage to investigate this issue, and ask tough questions about proportionality. The complete transcript of the feature is posted on the 20/20 web page at:

http://www.abcnews.com/onair/2020/transcripts/2020_schoolsports980529_trans.html

THE TRUTH IS THAT WOMEN COLLEGE ATHLETES RECEIVE PREFERENTIAL TREATMENT

With increasing public outcry against the loss of menƒs sports opportunity caused by proportionality, Donna Lopiano, the outspoken executive director of the Womenƒs Sports Foundation, has the dubious chore of attempting to defend the law. In a recent article in the Indianapolis Star, as quoted in the NCAA News, Lopiano provided her spin on the current situation. Such as:

* øItƒs not about quotas. Itƒs about treating our daughters the same as our sons.Ó

If there is one thing about proportionality that is true, it is that Title IX is enforced as a gender quota. Colleges, to comply with a federal law, must achieve a numerical øequityÓ in their sports programs. If anything, our daughters are getting better treatment than our sons, especially in the Olympic sports programs. Consider this Lopiano statement:

* øThe opposite treatment occurs in womenƒs sports. Usually a low-paid and under-qualified coach is initially hired and a team is given poor practice time, insufficient budget and inadequate facilities.Ó

This is what Lopiano, and those who defend gender quotas, want people to believe. These statements by Lopiano may have been true 20 years ago, but do not reflect what is happening on college campuses today. Ask any college athletic director, who must balance a budget and meet the federal quotas, and you will discover that female athletes often receive preferential treatment.

The best example of the special treatment for women is the NCAA Div. I scholarship limit rules. In almost every Olympic sport, the NCAA allows more scholarships for women athletes than their men peers. In some cases, all of the women receive full scholarships (head count), while the men must split up their scholarships (equivilency). The truth can be found in the numbers, as reflected in the 1997 NCAA Div. I Manual.

Sport/Womenƒs Scholarships/Menƒs Scholarships

Gymnastics/12 head count/6.3 equivilency

Tennis/8 head count/4.5 equivilency

Volleyball/12 head count/4.5 equivilency

Basketball/15 head count/13 head count

Swimming/14 equivilency/9.9 equivilency

X-Country/Track & field/18 equivilency/9.9 equivilency

Golf/6 equivilency/4.5 equivilency

Soccer/12 equivilency/9.9 equivilency

Waterpolo/8 equivilency/4.5 equivilency

Why would the NCAA allow many more scholarships for women than men in exactly the same sport? It has everything to do with a quota. And, the facts indicate that the ones getting the raw deal on the college level, with inadequate support, are those who compete in menƒs Olympic sports.

Until people stop buying into the rhetoric from Lopiano and the other quota-lovers, this unfair treatment to men will continue to flourish. The statistics prove that your daughters truly do have a better chance of getting a college sports scholarship than your sons.

ANTI-QUOTA ADVOCATE WARD CONNERLY PROVES THAT PEOPLE CAN CREATE CHANGE

Ward Connerly, a motivated citizen in California who was willing to stand up for his beliefs, proved that common people can make a difference. Connerly, a 58 year-old African-American, led the campaign to pass the Proposition 209 ballot initiative, which ends affirmative action in all California state and local government programs. Connerly has become a national leader against racial and gender preferences.

Connerly was interviewed by Wallace Terry in an article in Parade magazine on May 31 called øRacial Preferences Are Outdated.Ó Many of the beliefs that Connerly expresses are directly applicable to Title IX, and the gender quotas in sports. Consider these statements.

l øWe can continue perpetuating the outdated premise on which race and gender preferences are based, that blacks, women and other minorities are incapable of competing without a handicap. Or we can resume the journey to a fair and inclusive society.Ó

l øThirty years ago, we agreed that racism was morally wrong and we embraced affirmative action to remedy harm done to black people. But somewhere along the line, we became addicted to government and its occupation of our lives.Ó

Connerly said that he would like people to remember him this way:

* øAs an ordinary American who saw something he considered wrong and had the conviction to pursue a solution. You donƒt have to be an elected official to make a difference. Thatƒs democracy.Ó

Sounds a little like the Title IX debate, doesnƒt it?

PORTLAND STATE DROPS BASEBALL AND WRESTLING, BUT WRESTLING COULD SURVIVE

In a widely anticipated decision, Portland State University President Dan Bernstein announced that the university will eliminate its baseball and wrestling programs. Bernstein said the decision would help PSU to make progress toward gender equity, reduce a $1.3 million budget deficit and meet its commitments as a new member of the Big Sky Conference, including the addition of menƒs tennis.

Bernstein rejected the recommendation from the PSU Intercollegiate Athletics Board, which called for the college to maintain all of its sports, but cut costs from every program. According to his statement, Bernstein said, øIn my opinion, it is in the best interest of the athletic program to eliminate both the sports of baseball and wrestling. While the initial dollar savings may be relatively small, elimination of these sports better positions the Athletics Department to add menƒs tennis and make continued progress towards gender equity.Ó

Once again, another college has dropped menƒs sports programs, with a key factor being the federal requirements under Title IX. Once more, menƒs opportunities have been slashed, and there were no new opportunities given to women.

The only good news in this decision is that Portland State will allow a chance for the wrestling team to survive. According to the press release, øthe future of wrestling is contingent upon outside support, the continued allocation of fees by the Student Fees Committee and the reallocation of fees originally intended to support baseball to the Athletics Department.Ó Wrestling will no longer be supported by the athletic department, but will be allowed to piece together funding from student fees and outside donors.

Portland State wrestling coach Marlin Grahn firmly believes that wrestling will meet the conditions set by the PSU president and will return next year. This will save the storied wrestling program at Portland State, which has won NCAA team titles and has produced numerous Olympic wrestlers. Wrestling may be the most successful team in Portland State history. In the fall, it is a good bet that Portland State will have a wrestling team, competing on the Div. I level for the first time.

The problem about this solution is that once again a wrestling team is being held hostage, without support from its own athletic department. The teamƒs future is based upon financial support from student leaders, which could have a change in opinion, plus the ability of the team to raise its own funds. Once again, wrestling is being forced to support itself. The lack of support from its own athletic department may also give Portland State a disadvantage in the very competitive PAC-10, its new wrestling conference.

THE NCAA NEWS PROVIDES A VARIETY OF OPINIONS ON THE TITLE IX ISSUE

The NCAA News should be applauded for its effort to provide balanced opinions on the Title IX debate. The publication not only provides a forum for quota-advocates like Donna Lopiano to give her viewpoint, but also publishes media reports from different perspectives.

A recent NCAA News published quotes from an article by Patricia Kent, a guest columnist in the Manchester Union Leader. Consider these excerpts:

* øThe current trend of dissolving menƒs programs to obtain gender equity in colleges and universities is not a viable solution to the Title IX compliance dilemma. The question remains as to alternate solutions that would be fair to all athletes.Ó

* øMore opportunities should be provided for women in institutions of higher learning, yet this advance-ment of women in college sports should not be at the expense of eliminating opportunity for men. Title IX should create equal opportunities for all participants, regardless of gender, without discrimination.Ó

EXPECT MORE DROPPED PROGRAMS BEFORE SCHOOL STARTS IN THE FALL

As these media notes were prepared, a number of colleges are still making final decisions about the future of their sports programs. Colleges such as the Univ. of North Dakota and Boston College are reportedly prepared to drop menƒs teams soon. Some colleges may have waited until students left campus for the summer, to avoid the student outcry against the decision. Expect more blood-letting this summer.

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