All ten members of the Lake Oswego High School varsity softball team filed a federal Title IX lawsuit against the school district Monday, alleging gender discrimination.
The dispute stems from the disparity in facilities and treatment of the softball and baseball teams, the lawsuit says. The school’s baseball team has state-of-the-art on-campus hitting facility and a field with artificial turf and stadium seating that the girls can’t use, it says. The softball team has no hitting facility (and isn’t allowed to use the baseball one), and they’re stuck with using the meager dirt field at the middle school across the street.
“Simply put,” the complaint says, “the boys’ baseball team plays in a stadium that is equivalent or better than many college and minor league facilities while the girls’ softball team plays on a below-average junior high field.”
The team and parents say they’ve been jerked around, essentially promised money for facility upgrades only to have that reneged.
“This issue about Title IX and softball facilities have been discussed with parents and administration going back a couple years,” says Andrew Glascock, the attorney representing the players, to the Mercury. “The parents were trying to work with the district to get this revolved instead of going directly to litigation.”
Glascock highlights the fact that the lawsuit isn’t seeking any money (it is asking the court to award attorney’s fees, naturally), but just for the district to fix the situation. Read the full lawsuit below.
For reference, check out this video of Lake O’s sweet athletic facilities. You can get a good view of the baseball stadium at the one minute mark: