This year is the 50th anniversary of Title IX, the landmark law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex by education programs that receive federal funds.
When Title IX was passed in 1972, it was meant to ensure equal access and quality for women’s sports programs. It promises that women have access to the same funding and caliber of educational programs as men do. And over the years, the law has expanded to include protections against sexual harassment and assault, which was determined to be a form of sexual discrimination.
But the women who were (initially) advocating for equality in athletics weren’t advocating for all women to have equal athletic experiences. An entire group of women remains absent from the broader conversation about access and protection from discrimination on campus: Black women.
We need to confront the fact that Title IX isn’t as effective a tool for equality as we hoped it would be 50 years later. Colleges and universities must do better centering and normalizing the Black woman experience not just in collegiate athletics, but across all areas of higher education. And they should start by acknowledging that Black women don’t benefit from Title IX the same way their white peers do. 
Jessica Brown
In 2019, the NCAA reported that nearly 50,000 of its student-athletes were women. Only 12% of those athletes were Black women. A 2021 report from The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sports found that of the NCAA’s senior woman administrators, 79% are white and 15% are Black.
In athletics, centering Black women means revising policies and rules that are discriminatory to Black athletes and being intentional about hiring practices. Creating an inclusive environment for Black athletes doesn’t end after they are recruited and offered a scholarship to play.
