Title IX gave girls like me a chance to play, to dream big—and watching Billie Jean King beat Bobby Riggs showed me, and millions of others, what was truly possible.
Monday, June 23, marks the 53rd anniversary of Title IX, the 37 words that changed everything for girls and women in the United States:
“No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.”
Passed on June 23, 1972, Title IX opened doors that had long been shut. It gave girls like me the right to play sports, access educational opportunities and dream beyond the limitations society quietly placed on us.
(Bettmann Archives / Getty Images)
A year after Title IX became law, another historic moment unfolded, not in Congress, but on a tennis court in the Houston Astrodome. On Sept. 20, 1973, Billie Jean King faced off against Bobby Riggs in what was billed as the “Battle of the Sexes.” I was nine years old and already in love with tennis. I idolized Billie Jean King. She wasn’t just a phenomenal athlete–she was fierce, fearless and unapologetic.
I remember sitting on the gold shag carpet in front of our living room TV, giddy to watch Billie put Bobby in his place. My dad joined me. A former athlete himself, my dad loved sports and I loved sharing that with him. So when I turned to him and said, “I can’t wait to watch Billie kick Bobby’s butt,” I didn’t expect his response: “Billie’s not going to win. There’s no way a woman can beat a man.”
I was stunned. He believed in me, supported me and encouraged me. How could he not believe in Billie? I didn’t know it at the time, but that was my first real encounter with the limits of conditional support. It’s easy to believe in your daughter. But believing in all women? That’s a different kind of leap–one our culture still struggles to make.
Billie, of course, did beat Bobby. She won in straight sets. I beamed with pride and shouted, “See, Dad, I told you so!” That match became the most-watched tennis game of all time and a cultural milestone. Years later, I learned just how much pressure Billie felt going into it. She said, “I thought it would set us back 50 years if I didn’t win that match.” She wasn’t just playing for herself–she was playing for the entire women’s movement.
That same fighting spirit drove her advocacy for Title IX, which continues to shape the lives of millions of girls and women today. Before the law, opportunities in sports and education were limited or nonexistent. Since its passage, female participation in high school sports has increased by over 1,000 percent. At the college level, it’s grown more than 600 percent. I was one of those girls who benefitted. I ran track, played tennis and competed because someone before me refused to accept the status quo.
I’ve spent my adult life trying to move the needle in my own way. As the founder of Go! Go! Sports Girls, I wanted to create dolls that broke stereotypes–ones that showed girls they were strong, smart and capable. I thought the toy industry would welcome something empowering. Instead, I hit wall after wall of resistance.
It wasn’t just about dolls. It was about challenging a culture that still sends girls limiting messages from the moment they can walk. A culture that sexualizes girls, sidelines women and balks at the idea of true equality.
But I keep going, because I remember how I felt watching Billie Jean King. Because I know what Title IX made possible for me. And because I want more for the next generation.
Title IX was a beginning, not an end. On its 53rd anniversary, let’s recommit to finishing the fight for equality, and for every girl who still has to prove she belongs.
