Who Says Girls Can't Jump?

Dec. 4, 2004 — -- Title IX. In English: "Title Nine." Dig it.

It's a law. It's the reason so many girls now get the chance to play sports in public schools and colleges. It's the reason some of them now can compete with any athlete in the world, and even make a living playing basketball or soccer.

But it's also controversial. And you may be hearing the phrase Title Nine a lot in the news because there's a case about it now being considered by the Supreme Court. How the court rules could affect you and your friends, and someday even your children.

So what is Title Nine really all about?

Back in the day, before you were born -- even before your parents were born -- when people my age were in high school -- most girls didn't do sports. They weren't supposed to like it. They weren't supposed to be good at it. It was "unladylike."

Girls did have to take P.E. (physical education), but that was about doing sit-ups and jumping jacks and learning about their bodies. Girls who could run and jump or catch a ball were frowned upon by many other girls and boys as being "a little odd" or "too masculine."

But in the 1960s and '70s the women's liberation movement formed, picking up on some of the gains made by the civil rights movement. Women began demanding equality in the workplace and legal rights in marriages and in every aspect of American society, including, of course, education.

So in 1972, Congress made some changes to the Education Act, including the famous Title Nine. It ordered that girls be given the same opportunities as boys to take part in any educational programs or activities supported by money from the federal government.

Title Nine isn't all about sports. Members of Congress were referring to things like educational courses, campus housing, school clubs, financial aid and things like that. Women activists, however, saw an opening for girls to get into the powerful arena of high school and college sports.

What? Schools might have to allow girls to join the football and basketball teams? More importantly, they would have to spend as much money on sports for girls as they did for boys. There was an uproar among school administrators back then, and there is still resistance today. That's because in most places, boys' sports bring in more money to the school.

And that brings us to the case of Roderick Jackson, a physical education teacher who coached girls' basketball at Ensley High School in a poor section of Birmingham, Ala. He complained to school officials that his girls did not receive the same treatment the boys were getting. The girls had to play in the old gym, which was cold, had bent rims on the baskets and wooden backboards. The boys played in a newer and nicer gym with access to training equipment the girls did not have.

So what happened after Coach Jackson complained that this was a violation of Title Nine? He got fired as coach.