40 Million Dollar Slaves #3

             After reading about African American men star athletes the story of a women athlete was told in chapter nine. Luisa Harris was the first great star of women’s basketball but she is forgotten about. Lusia played basketball in high school and continued to play at Delta State a school a few miles away from her hometown in Mississippi. At Delta State, Lusia was one of only few African Americans at the school leading her team to three consecutive AIAW championships. During Harris’s four varsity seasons her team was 109-6. She competed in the Olympics but did not pursue a professional career because she felt the competition was too much. In 1980 Harris found work playing for the Houston Angels of the Women’s Basketball League in 1980. When the team disbanded she returned to Delta State and worked as an admissions counselor. Lusia served as the Women’s Basketball assistant coach at Delta State from 1980-1984. But to her dismay when the job became available a white man was hired instead. Disappointed, Lusia left Delta State and took the head coaching job at Texas Southern a historically Black College in Houston. The experience at Texas Southern was brutal. The women’s program like so many other Black Institution lacked a much needed support. There were no assistant coaches and Lusia had to give up her pay when she missed a class to coach. She felt the Men’s Basketball program was treated better where they had a full staff and would fly to games.

                Title IX a law aimed at equalizing spending on women’s and men’s programs in educational institutions began to have an effect. Title IX improved coaches’ salaries, equipment was upgraded, budgets were increased, transportation was improved and Women’s sports finally were treated equal.

                Today the dilemma for black women athletes is played out graphically in a growing women sports movement that has seen white women gain and black woman weaken. African Americans have seen success in Women’s Basketball but only 2.7 % of African American women are receiving scholarships to play all other Division 1 sports. White Women have also enjoyed success in the sports industry as black women have lagged.

                Title IX and the 19^th Amendment have helped women to be treated equal to men. But abortion is still illegal, denying a women’s choice, are women today still being discriminated against?