Fifty years ago, on June 23, President Richard Nixon signed Title IX, the 37-word snippet within the Educational Amendments of 1972 that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex “under any education program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.”

I became curious about the origins of Title IX while doing background research for my Op-Doc “The Queen of Basketball,” about Lucy Harris, one of the earliest beneficiaries of Title IX. My research led me to Representative Patsy Mink of Hawaii, who was a pivotal figure in writing and defending the law.

As the first woman of color elected to Congress, Ms. Mink — and her path to office — was influenced by the discrimination she experienced in her personal and professional lives. Many doors were closed to her as a Japanese American woman, and she became an activist and later a politician to change the status quo.

As I learned more about the early history of Title IX in the 1970s, I found that lobbyists and legislators mounted a formidable campaign to dilute and erode the law. This effort would culminate in a dramatic moment on the House floor, where Ms. Mink was pulled away during a crucial vote on the future of the law.

In “MINK!,” Wendy Mink narrates her mother’s groundbreaking rise to power and the startling collision between the personal and political that momentarily derailed the cause of gender equity in America. After Ms. Mink’s death in 2002, Title IX was officially renamed the Patsy Takemoto Mink Equal Opportunity in Education Act.

– by Ben Proudfoot

Credits
Director: Ben Proudfoot
Editors: David Faddis, Stephanie Owens, Ben Proudfoot
Featuring: Wendy Mink
Executive Producers: Naomi Osaka, Stuart Duguid, Adam Ellick, Kathleen Kingsbury, Ben Proudfoot
Producers: Rachel Greenwald, Ben Proudfoot
Co-Executive Producers: Philip Byron, Chavonne LeNoir
Original Score: Katya Richardson
Cinematographer: David Bolen
Supervising Sound Editor and Re-Recording Mixer: Sean Higgins
Colorist: Stephen Derluguian
Senior Post Production Supervisor: Dillon Brown
Post Production Supervisor: Laura Carlson
Co-Producer: Beatriz Browne
Archival Producers: Kimberlee Bassford, Wesley Jones
Online Editor: Tyler Ten Haken
Lead Assistant Editor: Cody Wilson
Assistant Editors: Foustene Fortenbach, Blaine Morris
Sound Effects Editor: Tom Boykin
Visual Effects: David Nieman
Digital Image Restoration: Cody Wilson
Additional Cinematography: Jordan Scott
First Assistant Camera: Jordan Scott
Production Sound Mixer: Christopher Broholm
Researcher: Brianna Pressey
Recording Engineer: Thor Fienberg
Scoring Mixer: Saun Santipreecha
Orchestration: Katya Richardson
Musicians: Leonard Chong, Ian Gottlieb, Lieza Hansen Kallin, Daniel Lim, Isaac Lopez, Gina Luciani, Katya Richardson, Kevin Richardson, Alex Tu, Sarah Wilkinson

Read more: https://nyti.ms/3zXXRxh

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Op-Docs is a forum for short, opinionated documentaries by independent filmmakers. Learn more about Op-Docs and how to submit to the series. Follow The New York Times Opinion section on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram (@NYTopinion).