NYRR Striders rememoran sus vidas en el deporte antes y después de Title IX

This year marks the 50th anniversary of Title IX, the federal civil rights law that gave women the right to equal opportunity in sports in educational institutions that receive federal funds, from elementary schools to colleges and universities.

For Women's History Month this March, we talked to participants and coaches in NYRR Striders who grew up without Title IX and have seen the changes it brought for girls and women. Their thoughts and experiences can inspire everyone to be active for life!

Marcy Simon, Striders Program Specialist: “Who Knows What My Life Would’ve Been Like?”

What are your memories of being involved in sports before Title IX?

Growing up in the 1960s in a middle-class family, there is no way my mother would have sent me off to play soccer or baseball or any sport because it wasn’t feminine. Girls just didn’t do sports.

If you were not involved in sports before Title IX, how did that impact you?

From the moment I could stand up, I loved to dance, so that’s what I did. I have no regrets—but who knows what my life would’ve been like if I’d played a sport? I became very good at dance, so clearly I had athletic ability, but I’ll never know how good I might have been at a sport because I never had the opportunity.

How might things have been different for you if you’d had more opportunities and access to sports?

It might have influenced everything—not just my childhood interests but my career choices. Girls were also discouraged from math and science—like sports, that was masculine—and as a result I was a disaster in math, but who knows how much of that was just the attitudes I grew up with?

What are your thoughts on the opportunities available to women and girls in sports today and the impact of these opportunities on all of society?

The girls I know who do sports today are extremely dedicated and competitive, and they have a physicality that I never developed. The girls profiled in the documentary “Sisters on Track” develop their talents as athletes and receive recognition that transforms their lives. This transformative experience was not available to any girl before Title IX.

Nereida Munoz, Striders Coach: "I Didn't Know What I Was Missing."

What are your memories of being involved in sports before Title IX?

Growing up in Brooklyn in the 1950s and '60s, I didn’t do much to stay active. We’d do some calisthenics in PE at school—sit-ups, climbing ropes, a little running around the gym. Girls and boys had separate PE in those days.

After school there was a softball team, but I didn’t have time—my mom was a single parent raising two kids, and my job was to come home from school and clean, then cook dinner for me and my brother.

If you were not involved in sports before Title IX, how did that impact you?

I was a chubby kid and never thought of myself as an athlete. On the playground I would always stand to the side. I wasn’t sad about it—I guess I didn’t know what I was missing.

How might things have been different for you if you’d had more opportunities and access to sports?

In 1974, I started working for Foot Locker, selling athletic footwear. We put up posters of athletic women—tennis players, hurdlers—and that impressed me, seeing those strong, powerful ladies. I started to jog and in 1976 when I did my first race, I felt so good, so motivated.

What are your thoughts on the opportunities available to women and girls in sports today and the impact of these opportunities on all of society?

I love working with the Striders and seeing older people, especially women, enjoy exercising, sometimes for the first time in their lives. And I love seeing kids get active. I cheer for them and feel so proud of them. The Run for the Future program for young women gives me a thrill. What an opportunity for them! It gives them a lot of confidence. It makes them want to try harder.

Kathy Walker, Striders Coach: "I'm Blessed That I've Always Had Opportunities."

What are your memories of being involved in sports before Title IX?

As a young girl growing up in the 1960s in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, I was very active—that kid who never stopped moving. I did what I wanted to do, and it was never an issue with my parents or the neighborhood boys. Looking back, I guess I was lucky.

In junior high I joined a girls basketball team. It changed my life and set me on a path I’m still on today. I played basketball in high school, and our team won the city championships. In college I played field hockey, and I continued that after college.

How might things have been different for you without opportunities to play sports?

I can’t imagine a life without sports. I’m blessed that I’ve always had opportunities. No one ever said I couldn’t do something because I was a girl. I’ve also had many role models along the way—women athletes who showed me how to be strong and capable.

Title IX created so many opportunities for girls and women. I was lucky to have the opportunities I did. I know many girls and women didn't have these opportunities. 

What are your thoughts on the opportunities available to women and girls in sports today and the impact of these opportunities on all of society?

For most of my career, I worked in NYC public schools. We gave girls an exceptional education and we saw it pay off—girls became strong, confident, capable. They knew what they could do, and they did it. I feel like that’s what sports has given me, too—I never felt like there was anything I couldn’t do.