Title IX states that no person should be discriminated against on the basis of sex in any educational programs or activities that receive federal funding. Betsy DeVos, the current Secretary of Education, has proposed rules redefining several aspects of Title IX. The Harvard Journal of Law and Gender has collected comments on this significant rule change from a wide variety of sources. This week our spotlight is on comments regarding K-12 students. While many high-profile Title IX cases take ... continue reading...
Comments in Response to the Department of Education’s Proposed Amendments to Title IX
Title IX states that no person should be discriminated against on the basis of sex in any educational programs or activities that receive federal funding. The law underpins hundreds of schools’ policies on gender and sex-based discrimination. Betsy DeVos, the current Secretary of Education, has proposed rules redefining several aspects of Title IX. Most notably, the proposed rules change the definition of sexual harassment, mandate Title IX investigations to include live hearings with ... continue reading...
Safe Sport Poses Legal and Ethical Questions for American Equestrians
Charlotte Anrig* In 2017, the American public learned that the USA Gymnastics national team doctor, Larry Nassar, had sexually abused hundreds of his young female patients over the course of at least a decade. In response to this scandal and comparable incidents within other US Olympic sports, Congress enacted the Protecting Young Victims from Sexual Abuse and Safe Sport Authorization Act. This Act made all certified members of national sport organizations mandated reporters, and it ... continue reading...
Gender-Based Pay Gaps in the Gig Economy
By Jacki Silbermann* A number of years ago, Uber claimed its business model was “driv[ing] another wave of women’s empowerment . . . For women around the world, Uber offers something unique: work on demand, whenever you want it.” Uber was not the only business predicted to increase women’s access to work. A 2017 study found that women in a variety of gig economy jobs believed that gig work would offer both more access to jobs and greater opportunity for equal pay. There is good reason to ... continue reading...
The 19th Amendment at 100: Modern Challenges
By Nicole Williamson* August 2020 marks one hundred years since the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment granting women the right to vote in the United States. As stated quite simply in the Amendment’s text, “the right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.” These foundational words ushered in a new era of women’s rights in the United States, as enfranchisement further empowered women to voice ... continue reading...