50 Years After Title IX, the Struggle for Gender Equity Continues—in Sports and Beyond
By Billie Jean King and Darren Walker, published to Sports Illustrated
This summer we celebrate 50 years of Title IX—a game-changer for women and girls in sports. Before this crucial federal protection, girls made up only 7% of high school athletes. With virtually no sports scholarships available to women, female college athletes taped together uniforms. And they faced blatant discrimination, on the court and off. Indeed, 60 years ago, a young girl playing her first tournament at the Los Angeles Tennis Club was forced to step out of a group photo—because she was wearing shorts, not a skirt.