Title IX is a 37-word United States law enacted on June 23, 1972 that states: "No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance."

- Wikipedia

Title IX of the Education Amendment of 1972 covers a lot of things, but it has mostly been used in reference with guaranteeing equality for men's sports and women's sports.

Title IX makes things better. Read what New Moon wrote back in July:

...here's what the pre-Title IX world looked like...Things were different. The primary physical activities for girls were cheerleading and square-dancing. Only 1 in 27 girls played high school sports. There were virtually no college scholarships for female athletes. And female college athletes received only 2% of overall athletic budgets.

Now, I was born in 1972 and I have yet to see this equality. I mean how many of you can honestly say that your boys basketball team and your girls basketball team were treated the same in high school? How about college?

I'm not even sure my college had a women's basketball team. I mean - I think they did, but I have no proof.

What I am trying to say it that things are not equal. As much as I would like to believe that boys and girls sports are treated fairly in public education in the United States, I know they are not.

We can change this. The National Women's Law Center has a petition site where you can sign a pledge to "Help hold your local schools accountable by signing the Fair Play Now! Pledge. Our goal is to recruit 3,000 new Title IX supporters who will take action to ensure that girls have equal access to play and enjoy the benefits of sports".

Here is the pledge:

I support Title IX and believe that girls should have equal opportunities to play sports and equal treatment when they do.

I will educate myself and others about the importance of Title IX and commit to forwarding information about the Fair Play Now! Pledge to five friends.

I will stand up for girls in my community by finding out if my local schools are providing a level playing field for girls in sports.

It would be great if everyone went and signed the petition. It would be even greater if everyone who signed the petition really got involved.

Read more about Title IX here.

Contributing Editor Sarah also blogs at Sarah and the Goon Squad and DC Metro Moms Blog.