There are moments that change sports forever. But what happened in June, 1972 changed lives.
Richard Nixon signed a new statute called Title IX, calling for equal opportunities in higher education for women. The landmark legislation opened the door for young women to enjoy the same experiences in sports as young men.
To celebrate the 40th anniversary, Sports Illustrated featured the words of Title IX on the cover of this week’s issue and then dedicated 23 pages to pictures and coverage inside.
It’s a highly unusual move for SI, considering it never devotes that kind of space to a single issue, let alone an issue about women’s sports. But it speaks to the magnitude of Title IX.
Writes Kelli Anderson:
According a report provided by the Women’s Sports Foundation, 294,015 girls competed in high school sports four decades ago. By last year the number had ballooned to 3,173,549, and it’s growing.
I did a Q/A with senior editor Trisha Blackmar, who oversaw the package.
How did this issue come out about?
Blackmar: Last fall, we recognized we hadn’t done anything on Title IX since the 20th anniversary. We ran it by (managing editor) Terry McDonell and he was very supportive. Outside of a sport preview issue, I can’t think of another time where we devoted the entire feature well to one issue. Once I heard we had the pages, we ran with it.
Why is Title IX an important story for Sports Illustrated?
Blackmar: I think it is important to acknowledge there still is a struggle for gender equity. We thought the best way to address it would be to do stories on the past, now, and looking ahead to the future. They look at the entire scope of issues related to Title IX.
Why did SI decide use words on the cover instead of photos?
Blackmar: Our designer (Chris Hercik) wanted to do a graphic treatment. I handed him the 37-words (from Title IX), thinking he could this as part of the graphic. It was his idea to use that as the whole cover and highlight the words that he did. I thought it looked fantastic when I saw it. It really grabs your attention. It’s all you need to say.