Oakland City Council
July 5, 2022

APPROVED AS TO FORM AND LEGALITY ________________________ CITY ATTORNEY’S OFFICE OAKLAND CITY COUNCIL RESOLUTION NO. _______________ C.M.S. INTRODUCED BY COUNCILMEMBERS DAN KALB, CARROLL FIFE, REBECCA KAPLAN, COUNCIL PRESIDENT NIKKI FORTUNATO BAS, AND MAYOR LIBBY SCHAAF ADOPT A RESOLUTION (1) CELEBRATING THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF TITLE IX OF THE EDUCATION AMENDMENTS OF 1972, WHICH SEEKS TO GUARANTEE EQUALITY IN EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS AND ACTIVITIES REGARDLESS OF SEX; AND (2) CELEBRATING THE POWERFUL IMPACTS OF TITLE IX SINCE ITS ENACTMENT IN 1972; AND (3) ENCOURAGING ADDITIONAL WORK TO FURTHER GENDER EQUALITY IN EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS AND SCHOOL-BASED ATHLETICS WHEREAS, in 1970, a special House Subcommittee on Education first held hearings regarding sex discrimination in higher education; and WHEREAS, during those hearings, several legislators recognized the extent of pervasive discrimination against women with regard to opportunities in education; WHEREAS, the landmark Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (Title IX) was introduced as a result of the information exposed during those hearings; WHEREAS, Congresswoman Patsy Mink of Hawaii and Congresswoman Edith Green of Oregon authored the statute and Senator Birch Bayh introduced the statute in S. 659 on February 28, 1972; and WHEREAS, the legislation was passed by the U.S. Senate on March 1, 1972 and was passed by the House of Representatives on May 11, 1972; and WHEREAS, the legislation was signed into law by President Nixon on June 23, 1972; and WHEREAS, Title IX became effective on June 23, 1972; and 2 WHEREAS, Title IX states, “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; and WHEREAS, Title IX seeks to guarantee equality in educational programs and activities regardless of sex; and WHEREAS, Title IX, along with other equity laws, helped to unlock access to educational and athletic opportunities, paving the way for inroads into historically male-dominated professions including professional sports, science, math, and technology; and WHEREAS, the number of young women participating in high school athletics has increased from 294,015 to 3,402,733 since Title IX took effect; and WHEREAS, the number of women participating in college athletics rose from 29,977 to 215,486 since Title IX took effect; and WHEREAS, Title IX places an affirmative responsibility on schools to prevent sexual harassment and assault, and to investigate and respond when these offenses occur; and WHEREAS, Title IX is poised to play an important role in securing the legal rights of transgender students to compete in athletic teams according to their gender identity; and WHEREAS, additional work is still needed to further gender equality in educational programs and school-based athletics despite the advances made because of Title IX; and WHEREAS, a study conducted by the Women’s Sports Foundation revealed gross gender inequities across all college divisions, including disproportionately more athletic opportunities provided to men athletes and a shortfall in the investment of resources in women’s athletic programs such as dollars allocated for athletic scholarships, recruiting, and coach compensation; and WHEREAS, race and gender still tremendously impact a woman’s ability to holistically receive and benefit from Title IX; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED: That the Oakland City Council celebrates the 50th anniversary of Title IX; and be it FURTHER RESOLVED: That the Oakland City Council celebrates the powerful impacts of Title IX since its enactment in 1972; and be it FURTHER RESOLVED: That the City Council encourages additional work to further gender equity in educational programs and school-based athletics. 3 IN COUNCIL, OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA, PASSED BY THE FOLLOWING VOTE: AYES - FIFE, GALLO, KALB, KAPLAN, REID, TAYLOR, THAO AND PRESIDENT FORTUNATO BAS NOES – ABSENT – ABSTENTION – ATTEST: ASHA REED City Clerk and Clerk of the Council of the City of Oakland, California