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E-PrinceDillon Gym introduced a female-only swim hour last month after a Jewish and a Muslim student together approached Associate Director of Athletics for Campus Recreation David Leach in late September.
Leach said he treated their concern as one coming from ...
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Three cheers for sexism!
Are there really NO Title IX issues raised here? Putting your views of religion and sexism aside...is it even legal to restrict entrance to a coed University facility solely on the grounds of gender?
I'm disappointed to see this come to Princeton. First Harvard, now Princeton. Not long now before this becomes a nationwide trend.
What exactly is wrong with providing reasonable accommodation for a religious minority, regardless of whether or not you find their values reasonable? As for Title IX, I don't think it comes into play at all - having one swim hour for women only still gives men ample access to the pool.
@ 09':
Not necessarily. It is not legal to have a men's athletic team practice in the optimal 4:30 to 6:00 spot every day and have the women's team having to wait to practice from 6:30-8:00. Despite that being "equal time", it is not equal access/opportunity.
The question is what constitutes a "reasonable accomodation."
But that isn't what is happening here. The women aren't getting prime swim time while men have to wait. It isn't about favoritism, it is about religious accommodation. While the definition of "reasonable" accommodation may be subjective, I think common sense tells us that this isn't a hardship for male students. It is one hour a week. I think the men can cope.
Bravo to Princeton for making the right decision, and showing up Harvard once again!
next thing you know they'll want to vote too
They are using pool time that otherwise went unused. Regular rec swim starts (and always had) at 1pm on Sundays. Now they open 1 hour earlier to accommodate this group. I don't see it as being any different than staying open later for a SCUBA class where access is restricted only to those in the SCUBA class.
What if my religion prohibited me from swimming with black people? Would it then be appropriate for the University to establish a "whites only" swim hour? Simply because a group feels that discrimination should occur with regards to swimming facilities does not mean the University should enact such discrimination.
I have been to this swim twice and enjoyed it. I would have no problem with offering a comparable hour for men who are uncomfortable in bathing suits around women. Anything that gets more people swimming is great!