Womens Baseball
Baseball, Title IX and Jackie Robinson: It's All About Discrimination
The baseball world recently celebrated "Jackie Robinson Day. " On April 15, 1947, Jackie Robinson became the first African American to play major league baseball when he went onto Ebbets Field as a member of the Dodgers Brooklyn.
Many commentators have lamented the fact that 60 years after Jackie Robinson was the color barrier in baseball today only 8.4% of Major League Baseball (MLB) players are black. In fact, MLB has been going backwards. The current percentage of black players is the lowest more than 20 years. A little over a decade, in 1995, 19% of MLB players were black.
No one disputes that the number of professional baseball players Black is down, the controversy about the reasons.
An article I read recently attributed the decline of the legacy of baseball segregation and racism. The author argues that because of its history, baseball fails to "capture the imagination" of today's youth black athletes.
Others have argued that the city black athletes face various economic challenges that limit their access to land baseball, equipment, etc.
All these arguments have some merit in themselves. But ultimately, they fall short because other sports, such as football and basketball, baseball share the legacy of segregation and racism. Yet, black participation in other sports has continued to grow.
Last week, a colleague sent me an article on Title IX by Hubert Mizell of Gainesville.com. It struck me as a thunderbolt that Title IX is the most obvious why there are so few blacks in pro baseball.
The way Title IX has been interpreted and implement it effectively limits the number of scholarships baseball colleges and universities offer. In fact, most schools, even big schools like the University of Florida does not offer "full-ride scholarships to college baseball at all.
I was shocked when I discovered it.
Clearly, without a scholarship, many, many young black athletes can not afford to go to college and play college baseball and, later, professional baseball. Naturally, young black athletes will move to football and basketball, the sports that offer more scholarships. During the last generation, this change has become pronounced.
Title IX was passed by Congress 1972. The law, itself, is not controversial at all. It simply states that "No person in the United States is, on the basis of sex, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any educational program or activity receiving federal financial assistance. "
Then, Title IX prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex. It applies to discrimination in athletics. So far, so good. The problem is the interpretation of the law.
In 1979, the U.S. Department of Health, Education and well-being (which was before we separate "Department of Education) issued a policy interpretation Title IX. The policy provided that, in order to comply with Title IX, a college or university must pass one of three tests. The college or university must demonstrate that:
1. Provides athletic opportunities substantially proportionate to the number of students registered, or
2. Demonstrates a continued expansion of sports opportunities for the underrepresented sex, or
3. Full range of accommodation and actual interest and ability of underrepresented sex.
Many schools try to comply with Title IX through the third test. The problem is that this test is very subjective. How can you prove that you are providing "full and effective accommodation of the interests and the ability ….? You can participate in surveys to get some gauge of interest. But ultimately, if a school is based on the third test, it will be vulnerable to legal action by a person who thinks he has not complied.
Some of the largest, financially solid schools comply with Title IX of the meeting of the second test. They "show a continued expansion of sports opportunities for the underrepresented sex" by the addition of a women's team sports. Every time a school does, it is "good to go" for about five years. But, by adding Sport is a new proposal is losing money and small, less affluent, schools can not afford to do so. At least, not forever.
So, ultimately, all schools want or need to comply with Title IX of the meeting the first test. And it is this first test actually caused the problems.
If a school has a football team to Division I, it may grant up to 85 football scholarships (per rules the NCAA). The school can also award up to 13 scholarships for it's men's basketball team. Course to participate in these sports at the Division I school has to offer scholarships to these 98 men in athletics.
Women now make a huge 58% of college enrollment. So, to pass the first test, and award scholarships "substantially proportionate" number of students enrolled in school has to award about 110 scholarships to women just to equal the scholarships provided for men's football and basketball.
And when you add in the sport of other men – it becomes impossible to meet the "substantially proportionate" test without cause serious cutting grants to sports other people or dropping some sports altogether.
So, that's exactly what schools do. When watching sports like tennis, golf, athletics / cross-country, Swimming / Diving – there are more scholarships to women than men in each of these sports. Even in basketball – men's teams in college basketball get 13 scholarships; women's teams get 15.
Wrestling is one of the greatest athletes in most schools. There is a large fan base of college fight. But thanks to Title IX, there are college scholarships of Anti years.
James Madison University is the latest school to announce he will be dropping 10 sports, 7 teams men teams 3 women to meet the "substantially proportionate" test of Title IX.
You might say: "Well, they should just get rid Football. "The problem with this idea is that football is the only college sport that makes money. Men's Basketball on breaks even (if the school lucky). No other college sport pays for itself.
This means that the college will likely lose money on all the other teams sports, he adds, including all women's team sports. Football is the bill-payer for many of these sports in many schools. So is rid of football is not the answer.
So what does all this have to do with Jackie Robinson and the lack of black professionals baseball players of today?
Here's what.
Because of the way Title IX has been interpreted and implemented, programs for college baseball are only allowed 11.7 scholarships. For about 30 players are on a college baseball team, normally no one receives a full scholarship.
Thus, baseball has become more and more a sport for the relatively affluent. The reason is simple. You must be able to afford to pay for college to play college baseball.
However, in football and basketball, almost everyone the team has a full scholarship.
For a young, black athlete, football and basketball offers an opportunity for scholarship much more likely. It is not surprising, then, that black athletes have gravitated toward football and basketball and baseball later. This is common sense.
It is ironic that, Title IX, a law designed to limit sex discrimination in athletics has turned to, perhaps, the cause largest gender, race and class discrimination in college athletics today.
About the Author
Mo Johnson is a graduate of the University of Tennessee and a long-time SEC sports fan. He is publisher of SEC Sports Fan. If interested in Southeastern Conference Baseball, check out SEC Baseball.
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