I posted a month or so ago on the Civil Rights Act of 2008 and its importance for students, and I wanted to provide an update. Among many other things, this bill is designed to restore the intentions of the original Title IX provisions protecting students from sexual harassment at school. The courts in recent years have made it increasingly difficult for students to sue their schools for allowing sexual harassment to continue after it was brought to the attention of school authorities. According to legal scholar Fatima Goss Graves, students are now less protected at school than they would be in the workplace.

Title IX applies to any educational institution that receives federal funding, so it applies to all public schools and the vast majority of colleges and universities. For more on Title IX, check out the I EXercise My Rights campaign.

The bill is still in committee in both the House and the Senate – not surprising given that this is an election year. I just spoke with a staff member working with Representative John Lewis, the sponsor of the bill in the House, and asked her how concerned students might best fight for the bill to be passed. She suggested that you contact your Representatives and Senators and ask them to co-sponsor the bill. The more co-sponsors, the more likely the bill is to be taken up again next year if it doesn’t pass this year. (The links in this paragraph will take you to a list of current co-sponsors as well as other info about the bill.)

This is an important bill for protecting women (especially your younger sisters) in a place that they deserve to feel completely safe. So please make that call. And if your Congresspeople are already co-sponsors, call them anyway to say thank you. That lets them know that the issue is on their constituents’ radar and keeps it on theirs.