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Another gender discrimination lawsuit has been filed in Connecticut, the latest in what seems like a string of such cases in the state in recent history. But as WNPR’s Neena Satija reports, rather than suing a university, the plaintiff is seeking damages against a youth sports league.
Dr. Claudia Harris was a head coach at the New Canaan Lacrosse Association for years, and her daughter still plays in the league. She felt like the league was unfairly providing more resources to boys’ lacrosse and not enough for girls.
“We didn’t have enough coaches, and we certainly didn’t have enough coaches who knew the girl’s game, which is dramatically different from the boy’s game," says Harris.
But when Harris tried to bring this up at an association’s board meeting in 2010, she alleges that she was subsequently fired from her position. Now, she’s suing the association for violating the federal Title IX statutes. Those laws prohibit discrimination based on gender in any organization receiving federal funding.
Rob Romano teaches law at Quinnipiac University, and specializes in sports law. He says the spurt of Title IX lawsuits in the state may be part of a trend sparked by the success of UConn women’s basketball.
“They look at UConn, they see you know, young women performing and performing well in sports, and that drives the younger girls to want to play, so these issues are coming to a head," Romano says.
Still, this is the first such lawsuit Romano recalls that’s been filed against a youth league. Other Title IX lawsuits in the state target institutions like Quinnipiac and Yale, which receive direct federal funding.
Harris’ lawyer Kevin Black argues that the New Canaan Lacrosse Association does receive federal funding indirectly because it uses town facilities. But Romano isn’t convinced.
“It’s hard to see the connection," Romano says. "If it’s municipal field, maybe they’re receiving city funding or maybe even possible state funding. But where is the federal funding? I can’t believe the federal government is funding municipal fields in New Canaan.
Kevin Black says that’s not necessarily the point. He’s arguing that because the New Canaan Lacrosse Association is the only competitive lacrosse league in town, it’s basically an educational arm of New Canaan, which receives federal funding for many different projects. That makes it subject to Title IX law, even though it’s a non-profit private organization.
For WNPR, I’m Neena Satija.
