The video of Kallie Keeler, a high school sophomore wrestling in an all-girls tournament last December, is just 22 seconds long. But it might demonstrate the 54-year history and purpose of Title IX as much as any lengthy lawsuit filing.Taken by Kallie’s mother, Stephanie, video footage shows the 16-year-old wrestling an opponent who appears to be female. Halfway through the short match, Kallie looks at her mother, her face grimacing with pain and frustration. She mouths something, but it’s hard to decipher what. Moments later, Kallie lets herself be pinned to end the match. Kallie ran to her mom in tears.“[D]uring the match, the male athlete sexually assaulted [Kallie], shoving his fingers through her spandex clothing, digitally penetrating her vagina, and holding the position for several seconds,” reads the explosive complaint that Alliance Defending Freedom filed on Kallie’s behalf against the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association in June.
(Illustration by Thomas Fluharty for The Washington Examiner)
Kallie and Stephanie later learned from a coach on another team that her opponent was actually male and had been allowed to wrestle in the all-girls tournament without Kallie’s knowledge or consent. When the assault was reported, nothing happened for nearly two months.Like many other females at the center of similar ADF lawsuits, Kallie learned firsthand what can happen when organizations, policies, or laws allow males to compete against females. Her lawsuit intertwines three delicate topics that have become a flashpoint on the forefront of law, culture, and politics: parental rights, sexual assault risks, and male athletes competing against females in all-female arenas.Jonathan Scruggs, senior counsel and vice president of litigation strategy at ADF, told the Washington Examiner that, like with many of their cases on this topic, their clients and parents are asking for common sense to be applied to athletics.“[D]on’t allow men in women’s sports in Washington,” Scruggs said. “This violates Title IX and what happened to Kallie illustrates that not only did she wrestle and lose to a male. She was sexually harassed during the wrestling match publicly in front of everybody.”Supreme Court protects women, finally
