Sec. Clinton
On June 6th, United States Secretary of State Hilary Clinton launched the Women’s World Cup initiative: Empowering Women and Girls Through Sports. This program run by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and the Secretary Clinton’s Office of Global Women’s Issues will promote cross cultural exchanges through sports. According to Secretary Clinton sport exchanges are some of the most popular form of bilateral exchanges. The fact that these sport exchanges will now be expanded to promote the participation of women in sports is a tremendous coup for gender equality and bilateral relations across the globe.
Secretary Clinton cited the passing of Title IX as a key reason for the passage of this initiative. Title IX 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” Cornell
Its a direct result of Title IX that the Empowering Women and Girls Through Sports initiative was made possible. Title IX and this exchange ensures that the participation of women in sports is given equal prominence and funding at the Federal level. Not only does this help girls in the United States it encourages other countries to promote the participation of girls in sports.
Below you can find the video of Secretary’s speech