High court expands Title IX sex-discrimination protections

WASHINGTON -- Coach Roderick Jackson recalls the warnings from colleagues when he began complaining that the boys high school basketball team got better treatment than his girls team. "You better hush your mouth," they said.

Jackson wouldn't let up, shooting off letters and requesting meetings with Birmingham, Ala., school officials. His efforts didn't have the desired result: He was fired in May 2001.

But Jackson continued his fight, filing a lawsuit claiming Title IX, the landmark gender equity law, shielded him from termination for complaining about unequal conditions.

He lost in U.S. District Court and again at federal appeals court. But he pressed on and in the biggest legal arena of all, he won.

In a 5-4 decision Tuesday, the Supreme Court ruled that a teacher or coach who claims sexual discrimination on behalf of others is protected from firing at academic institutions that receive federal funding.

"The court's ruling, in my opinion, is a win-win situation for schools and students," said an elated Jackson. "When people know they're protected against retaliation, people like my students and myself will be more willing to come forward."

The ruling expanding protections offered by Title IX was cheered by women's advocates but decried by school boards, which worry it will lead to a torrent of lawsuits.

Title IX, the 1972 law best known for promoting women's athletics, bars sex discrimination in any educational program receiving federal funds.

It already was settled law that students or others could sue if they thought they were shortchanged based on their sex.

But the statute has been silent as to the rights of whistleblowers who aren't direct victims but who claim retaliation. Since 1975, the federal government has interpreted Title IX to cover retaliation claims.

Jackson sought to pursue a Title IX lawsuit when he lost his coaching job in 2001 after repeatedly asking Birmingham school officials to provide his team a regulation-size gym with basketball rims that weren't bent -- just like the boys' team had.

He lost in lower courts, which ruled Title IX did not authorize retaliation claims. The Supreme Court's ruling now lets Jackson proceed to trial to prove he was suspended because of his complaints.

"This decision is a slam dunk victory for everyone who cares about equal opportunity," said Marcia D. Greenberger, co-president of the National Women's Law Center. "The court has confirmed that people cannot be punished for standing up for their rights."

But Julie Underwood, general counsel for the National School Board Association, said the ruling was unfair because whistleblowers already had other legal options, such as claiming a First Amendment violation or filing complaints with the U.S. Education Department's Office of Civil Rights.

"The issue is paving another path to the courthouse when it wasn't necessary," she said. "As it plays out, it will increase litigation against the school districts."

Legal experts said the real test will be how broadly lower courts interpret the retaliation claim since O'Connor's opinion does not make clear whether a teacher or coach is protected if fired for making a Title IX claim that later turns out to be false.

Deborah Brake, a gender discrimination expert at the University of Pittsburgh law school, said that for the ruling to have teeth, courts must protect those who bring "good faith" discrimination claims that don't end up being validated.

"If they don't allow it, it's much too chilling on complaints," she said.

Jackson's case had drawn wide interest, with support from the Bush administration and a coalition of 180 civil rights groups including the NAACP, the American Civil Liberties Union and the American Federation of Teachers, as well as dozens of women's advocacy groups.

Opposing Jackson were nine states -- Alabama, Delaware, Hawaii, Nevada, Oregon, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah and Virginia.

Jackson, who remained on the payroll as a teacher, eventually was rehired as coach in 2003 on an interim basis, and the old gym now has two new, regulation-sized hoops.

The case is Jackson v. Birmingham Board of Education, 02-1672.

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On the Net:

The opinion in Jackson v. Birmingham Board of Education is available at:

http://wid.ap.org/documents/scotus/050329jackson.pdf