Men and Women Differ Sharply on Title IX Gains
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July 2022
It may come as no surprise that on the 50th anniversary of Title IX—1972’s landmark anti-discrimination law—men and women view its impact differently. In a recent poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and the National Women’s History Museum, 61 percent of men reported a great deal or a lot of progress in the equal treatment of women. Only 37 percent of women agreed, while half reported some progress, and 13 percent cited few or no gains.
“Although Title IX is broad reaching, the public seems to know it best for creating equal opportunities for women in sports, with more than half of respondents reporting gains in that arena. The results also show that the public was able to distinguish between the types of progress, or lack thereof, on other fronts.”
Progress was also viewed as being unequal. Most respondents (49 percent) reported solid strides for white women, but fewer for women of color (36 percent), LGBTQ women (33 percent), and low-income women (26 percent). Opinions also split along age and party lines. Republicans, men, and women age 50+ cited significant gains. Most Democrats and women age 18-49 did not. While the majority of respondents approved of Title IX—and nearly half saw considerable gains in educational, employment, and leadership opportunities for women—fewer cited improved protections against sexual assault, gender discrimination, and gender-based violence.
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