37 Words: Title IX and Fifty Years of Fighting Sex Discrimination

by Sherry Boschert

Overview

A sweeping history of the federal legislation that prohibits sex discrimination in education, published on the fiftieth anniversary of Title IX

“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.”
—Title IX’s first thirty-seven words

By prohibiting sex discrimination in federally funded education, the 1972 legislation popularly known as Title IX profoundly changed the lives of women and girls in the United States, accelerating a movement for equal education in classrooms, on sports fields, and in all of campus life.

37 Words is the story of Title IX. Filled with rich characters—from Bernice Resnick Sandler, an early organizer for the law, to her trans grandchild—the story of Title IX is a legislative and legal drama with conflicts over regulations and challenges to the law. It’s also a human story about women denied opportunities, students struggling for an education free from sexual harassment, and activists defying sexist discrimination. These intersecting narratives of women seeking an education, playing sports, and wanting protection from sexual harassment and assault map gains and setbacks for feminism in the last fifty years and show how some women benefit more than others. Award-winning journalist Sherry Boschert beautifully explores the gripping history of Title IX through the gutsy people behind it.

In the tradition of the acclaimed documentary She’s Beautiful When She’s Angry, 37 Words offers a crucial playbook for anyone who wants to understand how we got here and who is horrified by current attacks on women’s rights.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781620977293
Publisher:	New Press, The
Publication date:	04/12/2022
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	8 MB

About the Author

Sherry Boschert is an award-winning journalist and the author of Plug-in Hybrids: The Cars That Will Recharge America. Among her many honors, she received a Distinguished Service Award from the Society of Professional Journalists for her efforts to promote equity within the news industry. She lives in New Hampshire.

Table of Contents

1 Strong-1969 1

2 Complaints-1970 11

3 Congress-1970-1972 28

4 Implementation-1972-1977 48

5 Sexual Harassment-1977-1980 72

6 Enforcement-1975-1979 90

7 Backlash-1980-1990 108

8 Christine, Jackie, Rebecca, Nicole, Alida, LaShonda-1991-1999 130

9 Athletics-1992-1999 148

10 Retaliation-2000-2010 165

11 Sexual Assault-2000-2010 184

12 Acceleration-2011-2014 202

13 Critical Mass-2015-2016 225

14 Backlash-2017-2020 244

15 Fifty Years 266

16 The Next Fifty Years 279

Acknowledgments 285

Text of Tide IX of the Education Amendments of 1912 289

Lists of Characters and Acronyms 291

Notes 299

Index 359

Editorial Reviews

12/06/2021

Journalist Boschert (Plug in Hybrids) chronicles in this inspiring history how Title IX, which bans sex discrimination in federally funded education, has evolved from its passage in 1972 to the present day. Noting that the law was initially designed to address gaps in the 1963 Equal Pay Act and the 1964 Civil Rights Act, Boschert focuses on three key women who helped shape Title IX. University of Maryland doctoral candidate Bernice Resnick Sandler came up with the idea of using universities’ federal contracts to file class action complaints demanding fairness in hiring and admissions. Yale University student Pamela Price was one of the plaintiffs in 1977’s Alexander v. Yale, which established that sexual harassment was a form of sex discrimination. Diane Milutinovich, an athletics administrator at CSU Fresno, used Title IX in the 1990s to insist on equal resources for men’s and women’s sports. Throughout, Boschert emphasizes that protection under the law is not automatic but relies on pressure from government officials and outside activists; stresses the importance of Title IX in addressing inequities that are grounded in both race and gender; and highlights the persistence and optimism of the educators, lawyers, students, and athletes she profiles. Readers will take heart in this story of hard won progress in the fight for equality. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for 37 Words:
“[37 Words] condenses 50 years of history into fewer than 300 pages, an impressive feat. . . . Spun together, the details chart the trajectory of the law from its early days, when it was most closely associated with the expansion of athletic opportunity, to how it became an imperfect tool for holding schools accountable for not taking rape seriously and failing to protect gay and transgender students.”
—Washington Monthly

“Throughout, Boschert emphasizes that protection under the law is not automatic but relies on pressure from government officials and outside activists; stresses the importance of Title IX in addressing inequities that are grounded in both race and gender; and highlights the persistence and optimism of the educators, lawyers, students, and athletes she profiles. Readers will take heart in this story of hard won progress in the fight for equality.”
—Publishers Weekly

“Readers will finish this book with a clearer understanding of Title IX’s impact, its shortcomings, and the continued threats faced by female students as they seek access to educational opportunities.”
—Library Journal

“A valuable, well-researched, and nuanced history on an important subject.”
—Booklist

“37 Words takes perhaps the most consequential piece of legislation—in terms of actual, demonstrable impact—of the twentieth century and makes it come alive. Sherry Boschert argues that Title IX is a vital part of the larger educational mission ensuring that systems of oppression don’t deny young people an honest chance to grow. 37 Words is a book that will expand your mind and take you on a journey far, far beyond the period when Title IX became law. It is a look at more than fifty years of educational history, with lessons for all of us.”
—Dave Zirin, author of The Kaepernick Effect and sports editor, The Nation

“Boschert’s exquisite achievement in 37 Words rests on deeply researched history, eloquent prose, and perhaps most surprising of all, the page-turning story of how one unassuming yet brave woman—Bernice Sandler—turned sexist oppression into educational liberation for millions of women. There is sobering and uplifting brilliance dancing off the pages of this book, page after page. Do not miss it.”
—Jennifer Freyd, founder and president, Center for Institutional Courage

“Indispensable reading for anyone who cares about education, including students, teachers, administrators, parents, and graduates—so basically everyone.”
—Nancy Chi Cantalupo, Title IX legal scholar and professor of law, Wayne State University

“The struggle to win, implement, and preserve Title IX, the bedrock 1972 law banning sex discrimination in education, comes alive in these pages. Boschert’s vivid biographical portraits of key leaders of these efforts, from the 1960s to the present, make this a page-turner that illuminates the historical roots and antecedents of the #MeToo movement.”
—Ruth Milkman, professor of sociology and history, CUNY Graduate Center, and author of On Gender, Labor, and Inequality

“Sherry Boschert captures the fight waged by feminists over decades against sex discrimination in education and to secure equal access and opportunity for women and girls. Setbacks and victories, protests and demonstrations, the fights in Congress and in the courts, are all chronicled by Boschert. 37 Words is an important book at an important time, reminding us of the need to keep fighting for Title IX.”
—Katherine Spillar, executive editor, Ms. magazine

“A page-turner for anyone interested in learning how one person’s experience can be turned into a national movement.”
—Deborah T. Ashford, senior counsel, Hogan Lovells LLP

“37 Words is a stellar and moving tribute to Title IX’s fifty years of gender equity progress in schools. The book centers the champions behind this landmark law—the authors and advocates, survivors and athletes, and every student breaking gender stereotypes to reach their dreams. Well-researched and brimming with hope, the book is an inspiration in our continued fight for gender justice for all.”
—Noreen Farrell, executive director, Equal Rights Advocates

“I’m mightily impressed by the breadth and volume of Boschert’s research and her ability to craft it into a compelling read. 37 Words is a history but it’s also a road map for what it will take to go forward. It’s a really important book.”
—Lucy Jane Bledsoe, author of No Stopping Us Now

From the Publisher

02/01/2022

With this detailed work, Boschert (Plug-In Hybrids: The Cars That Will Recharge America) puts a human face on Title IX, the law that revolutionized gender equity in U.S. education when it was passed in 1972. Beginning with the early days of the movement for the amendment, she describes some of the people who faced discrimination in schools and academic hiring and who lobbied for change. Later chapters delve into two of Title IX's most significant areas of impact, equity in sports and campus responses to sexual assault and harassment, focusing especially on Fresno State and Yale but also discussing the major impact and advocacy at colleges and high schools across the country. Boschert illustrates connections between Title IX and the #MeToo and Black Lives Matter movements and shows how its reach has extended deep into American culture and social change. However, she stresses that while a long history of activism and sacrifice made Title IX possible, the battle for educational equity still has a long way to go. VERDICT Readers will finish this book with a clearer understanding of Title IX's impact, its shortcomings, and the continued threats faced by female students as they seek access to educational opportunities.—Sarah Schroeder

Library Journal