Even Superstar Athletes Need Child Care: On the 50th Anniversary of Title IX, Olympic Athlete Allyson Felix Discusses the Importance of Child Care on NOICTSU

On the 50th anniversary of Title IX (the federal law passed in 1972 that prohibits sex-based discrimination in schools), we recognize all the ways it’s helped advance gender equity – in sports, education, and beyond.

But we are also reminded that equity for women is not just about opportunity: it’s about putting in place the infrastructure that allows women to compete at their highest potential, including supports like pregnancy protections, paid leave, and affordable child care. While we’ve made great strides in addressing gender discrimination since Title IX passed, there’s much more to be done to ensure that women are competing on equal ground and equal terms as men.

It’s fitting that this week’s episode of Neighborhood Villages and Lemonada Media’s hit podcast, No One Is Coming To Save Us (NOICTSU), features Olympian Allyson Felix, the most decorated U.S. track and field athlete in history and a fierce advocate for women and moms. From fighting for paid leave and job security during pregnancy and after childbirth, to her focus on child care, Allyson’s efforts are reflective of the struggles so many women face in balancing motherhood and their careers.

Just this week, Allyson and Athleta announced the expansion of their child care grant program for mom-athletes. In partnership with nonprofit organization &Mother, they’ll provide free, accessible child care for select track & field events in 2022, starting with Allyson’s last championship race in Oregon this weekend (June 23-26). This program is part of the Power of She Fund spearheaded by Athleta, Felix, and the Women’s Sports Foundation, which provides female athletes grant funds for necessary child care resources around training and competing.

In this week’s episode of NOICTSU, Allyson tells host Gloria Riviera why she is helping lead this initiative: “I had seen so many women struggle and I had so many friends who were trying to figure things out, and so to be able to put this fund together and know people who were going to benefit from it was incredible. Also, knowing the impact that this will have on future generations, to be able to see moms who are out here doing it and know that you don’t have to choose between motherhood and anything else, it just made me feel great about the whole thing.”

The barriers mom-athletes face are reflective of the systemic problems that most women experience with respect to child care. The U.S. has historically discriminated against, dismissed, and undervalued motherhood, and many women are often forced to choose between a career and being a mom. This has been especially true throughout the pandemic: in 2021, 1.6 million mothers left the workforce and recent job numbers show that women continue to be left behind.

And while private and philanthropic investments in child care solutions are to be commended, the problem is too big and complex for those dollars alone to solve our child care crisis in a sustainable way. In order to truly allow women to reach their full potential and promote gender equality, we need public investment in our child care system. That’s why Neighborhood Villages’ continues to advocate for an overhaul of the child care sector and the creation of a sustainable system that supports families, children and educators.

Accessible child care can improve the participation, performance, and overall well-being for mom-athletes like Allyson and all mothers. Like Title IX, child care solutions need to be codified into public policy because that’s what true equality for women demands.

To hear more, listen to this week’s episode of NOICTSU hosted by Gloria Riviera, featuring Allyson Felix, along with Olga Harvey of the Women’s Sports Foundation.