BRING IT ON, said Quinnipiac University and its proposed cheerleading squad, without a hint of irony. Well, it has been brought, and it's now official:
cheerleading is not a sport. Not for Title IX purposes, anyway, said U.S. District Judge Stefan Underhill in a 95-page opinion (!) released today in Bridgeport, Conn.
This development has generated a lot of news coverage, including local pubs such as the
Hartford Courant and the
Connecticut Post, as well as national outlets such as the
Wall Street Journal,
The Big Lead, and
Jezebel. And rightfully so. The case deals with an important junction of law, sports, and women's rights. (For those who don't know, Title IX is part of a 1973 federal law that prohibits gender discrimination in public educational programs. Sports-wise, it is most often used to balance school spending on men's and women's sports.)
Here's the gist of the case. In March 2009, Quinnipiac University decided to cut three sports teams: men's golf, men's outdoor track, and women's volleyball. To remain in compliance with Title IX, Quinnipiac tried to replace women's volleyball with competitive cheerleading. The ACLU (you were expecting someone else?) sued the school on behalf of 5 female volleyball players, arguing that Quinnipiac failed to provide equal opportunities for male and female athletes. Judge Underhill determined that competitive cheerleading is
not a collegiate sport for Title IX purposes. Quinnipiac, therefore, is in violation of Title IX and now has 60 days to announce how it will comply with that law. This amounts to a victory for the volleyball-playing plaintiffs (Underhill ordered the reinstatement of the women's volleyball team for the 2010-11 season) but a
tears-inducing loss for cheerleaders. As you can see, Kirsten Dunst is
pissed.
Check out the two money quotes from Judge Underhill after the jump.
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