Trinity’s student athletes left campus last spring with the knowledge that both the Jesse/Miller Field, home to Men’s Lacrosse and Football, and the Robin L. Sheppard Field, where Women’s Lacrosse and Field Hockey play, would be undergoing improvements over the summer. The proposed plan was for both fields to receive brand new and increased seating which would allow the Women’s Field Hockey team to host the NCAA Division III Field Hockey championships.
Upon return to campus, however, the athletes found that while the men’s field improvements had been completed beyond expectations, the work on the women’s field had yet to even begin. By the time construction was over a few weeks into the semester, the Robin L. Sheppard Field was left with five rows of metal bleachers which could barely fit all of Trinity’s female athletes, let alone the 1,000 person capacity required to host the NCAA championship. This disappointing turn of events left Trinity’s female athletes feeling undervalued compared to their male counterparts, an unfortunately popular trend among many collegiate and professional female athletes today.
Like so many other female athletes, these women at Trinity refuse to let this unequal treatment be overlooked. This led to the creation of the Trinity College Women’s Athletic League, a coalition dedicated to promoting gender equality on Trinity’s campus. All of Trinity’s female athletes gathered in late September to demonstrate the sheer inequality among the athletic facilities at Trinity by taking a picture sitting in the new Jesse/Miller seating, the five row metal bleachers at Robin L. Sheppard Field, and standing by the Softball field as they have no official seating at all. A petition was also created advocating for legal action via Title IX and simply stating that students and alumni of Trinity will not permit unequal treatment of men and women of any kind.
As of today, the petition has received over 2,000 signatures. Furthermore, warming rooms and more temporary bleachers have been added to the women’s field to permit them to host the NCAA Division III Field Hockey championships this upcoming weekend of November 20th. Championship games that Trinity’s own Field Hockey team will participate in as they have surpassed expectations this season and are currently in the Final Four.
However, the work of Trinity’s female athletes, as well as women everywhere, is not over. It is crucial to continue fighting for gender equality in all aspects of society, especially in typically male dominated fields. Taking a public stance and organizing against unequal treatment is only the beginning. Following through and refusing to give up until progress is made is just as crucial, and I have no doubt that these female athletes, and all women facing any gender inequality, have the skills and determination to do so.
Feature image courtesy of Trinity Women’s Athletic League’s Instagram, @trin.wal
