HomeMy WebLinkAbout50th Anniversary of Title IX - AAUWCOUNTY OF IIAWAI ' I1
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WHEREAS Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (Title IX) prohibits
sex discrimination (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, and gender identity)
protecting students and staff in any educational institution that receives federal funds; and
WHEREAS Hawai`i has a special connection to Title IX, also known as the
Patsy T. Mink Equal Opportunity in Education Act. As the principal author and driving
force behind the legislation, Patsy Mink steadfastly led the country to rise up to the
challenge of ensuring that all youth are treated fairly and equally in schools and overcame
gender and racial discrimination herself to become the first woman from Hawai'i elected
to the U.S. Congress; and
WHEREAS Title IX has helped make students safer from gender-based violence
and harassment by requiring schools to have policies, and to act, against sexual
harassment, sexual assault, and bullying by both staff and students, including harassment
based on stereotypes, providing important protection for LGBTQ+ students; and
WHEREAS, in the 50 years since its passage, Title IX has expanded
opportunities for women and girls in sports and in the science, technology, engineering,
art and math (STEAM) fields and improved protections for pregnant and parenting
students; and
WHEREAS Title IX must be strengthened and vigorously enforced. In recent
years the Department of Education has worked to systematically dismantle Title IX
protections and to rescind important guidance documents, with harmful implications for
students' civil rights and federal enforcement of Title IX; and
WHEREAS we must now pass the Gender Equity in Education Act, which would
codify protections designed to help students address sex discrimination in all areas of
education and ensure educational institutions have the resources needed to comply with
Title IX regulations.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, MITCHELL D. ROTH, Mayor of the County ofHawai`i,
do hereby proclaim June 23, 2022, as
THE 50th ANNIVERSARY OF TITLE IX
in the County ofHawai'i and urge every resident to recognize the importance of TITLE
IX to ensure that all students, regardless of their sex, have access to equal educational
opportunities.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and caused The Seal of the
County ofHawai`i to be affixed. Done this 23rd day ofJune 2022 in Hilo, Hawai V.
7---- ZPIek_
01,-.;---01,- MITCHELL D. ROTHalt..:--
N MAYOR
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