Although there has been much opposition against gender equality in sports, there has been a huge increase in the participation of females in sports within the last 30 years. Women were not expected to play sports since it went against the female gender role. Therefore, women did not have the opportunity to play a sport even if they wanted to since all sport teams were male. The global women’s movement started to change the classical gender role of women and opened up more opportunities for them in the process. The changes in the female gender role gave women more time and the opportunity to engage in physical activity and play sports.
The global women’s movement led to a U.S. law called Title IX. This law states that “no person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance” (Coakley, 235). Title IX was enacted in 1972 and was most prominent in changing high school and collegiate sports. As a result of this law, women’s sports teams were created for sports that previously only had males participating. However,the law is controversial since it led to feelings that females were getting special treatment and led to the elimination of some male sport programs to be in compliance with Title IX.
Another movement concurrent with the global women’s movement was the health and fitness movement. This movement was a result of scientific research findings that proved physical activity and exercise provided great health benefits, both physically and mentally. As a result of the health and fitness movement more women were encouraged to get out and engage in physical activity and play sports.
The increased participation of women in sports has led to more media coverage of women’s sports. The media is a very powerful tool in influencing the minds of children and when little girls see women playing sports they can be influenced to play also. The success and popularity of female athletes such as the Williams sisters and Michelle Wie has publicly legitimized women’s participation in sports. As a result of increasing media coverage of women’s sports, many sports are seen as people sports instead of male sports.
Although the right for females to participate in sport has been successful, there are reasons to be aware of that may hinder the female progression of participation in sports. Budget cuts of female sports programs is possible due to less revenue generation compared to male sports. Also, privately run organizations do not have to comply with Title IX and can give money only towards male sports if they choose. “Resistance to government regulations and backlash among people who resent changes that threaten dominant gender ideology” (Coakley, 243) are also among the reasons.
The trivialization of women’s sports is a big block on the road to gender equality in sports. Much of the public has the view that women can be good at sports, but never as good as men. Aggression, intimidation, and violence make sports play intense and exciting to watch; however, due to various reasons women cannot match these characteristics as well as their male counterparts. As a result, female athletes are not taken serious at times and some of them are seen as sex objects.
“Homophobia is a generalized fear or intolerance of lesbians, gay men, and bisexual people” (Coakley, 249). This phobia has directly affected a female’s not participating in a certain sport and indirectly in the form of parent’s not allowing their girl(s) to play sports that are believed to have lesbian participants. Women not participating in a sport can be due to fear of being seen as a lesbian or being linked with lesbians. Unfortunately, as a result, homophobia encourages “women to conform to traditional gender roles, and silences and makes invisible the lesbians who manage, coach, and play sports” (Coakely, 249).
Gender equality and fairness in sports will not happen by itself and more advancements need to be made to achieve this goal. There are a few social issues evident that make a roadblock in female sport progression. These issues are that sports are male dominated, male identified, and male centered. This social organization that dictates how to act whether coaching or playing sports is based on male behavior and personality.
Female athletes do not have the same amount of moral and financial support as do male athletes, especially on the scholastic and community level. This lack of support is a result of less-than-fair facility quality, scholarship availability, recruiting budgets, and publicity to name a few. As a result, females are discouraged from participating in sports.
When it comes to jobs for women in coaching and administration, women do not have equal opportunities and are underrepresented on all levels of sports administration, especially the higher levels. Sports programs that have traditionally hired men may have to hire women just to not be accused of discrimination. This makes it more of an unwanted obligation than a prideful duty. Women, when hired to work in sports administration sometimes do not feel like they are part of the organization and feel unwanted. This can lead to poor job satisfaction and quitting. Changes need to be made to the male-oriented social organization of sports for women to be more accepted in fulfilling sport administrative roles.
Many Division I football teams spend more money on their one male football program than all the school’s female sports programs combined. This is why these schools are not in compliance with the Title IX proportionality test. As a result, some of the non-profit making male sports programs such as wrestling may be dropped just to meet Title IX requirements. Undisputed priority is given to D-I football programs due to their wide popularity and high revenue. Some critics say less money should go to these football programs so that non-revenue sports can fairly keep afloat.
Male dominated sports have kept alive the gender ideology. This is due to the fact that “the meaning of gender and its application in peoples’ lives have been symbolized and powerfully presented in the bodily performances that occur in sports” (Coakley, 265). The success and level of achievement of males in power and performance sports has solidified their masculinity and dominance over women of the same sport and to an extent of women in society in general.
Being gay or lesbian in society is seen as going against the norm; therefore, gays and lesbians are seen as not normal. The public view of being openly gay in sports is that it will have a negative impact on the athlete and possibly the athlete’s team. Most Americans “are not ready to accept gay athletes” (Coakley, 271). Furthermore, some people even believe that gays do not have the right to play sports with heterosexuals. Lesbian athletes are more accepted than gay male athletes.
The new definition of masculinity aims to “tear down traditional masculinity and establish in his players a commitment to empathy, inclusion, and integrity” (Coakley, 274) so that society is affected in a manner that will benefit all human beings.