University of South Carolina women's basketball coach Dawn Staley on meeting the moment
After Dawn Staley and her University of South Carolina women's basketball team completed a perfect season by winning a fourth NCAA championship on Sunday, USTA.com is pleased to share a personal essay written by the trailblazing coach for last year's USOpen.org's Champions of Equality essay series. In this piece, Staley reflects on the importance of discipline in her life so far, and how her upbringing prepared her to speak up and out on behalf of the next generation of female athletes.
The disciplined person can do anything. This is the mantra instilled in me by my mother and my upbringing. Where I’m from is my superpower, and the foundation on which all my success is built.
Growing up in the housing projects of North Philadelphia prepared me to conquer the world and adversity in a unique way. Certain characteristics and abilities come with the territory, the most important being that you’re going to be brave, intuitive and hard working– whether you want to be or not. I have always known that if I am willing to work for my goals, then I can achieve them. My approach to the game, my fearlessness, my ability to anticipate actions and outcomes, it’s all attributed to North Philadelphia.
So imagine being told that no matter how hard you work, you will always be seen as less impressive, less important, less outstanding. And the only reason is that you just so happen to be what God created you to be, a woman.
Somehow your discipline, your tenacity, your focus and your sacrifice are less meaningful—in sports and every other industry—because you are female.
Now, imagine having feeling that on the biggest stage in your sport.
The 2021 NCAA Tournament was the "A-ha!" moment for women’s college basketball. As the players began their preparation for a national championship in the women’s bubble; they saw very clearly on social media that they were not valued by the NCAA in the same way their male counterparts were in their bubble. Their achievement was the same; their reward was not.
Dawn Staley celebrates with her team on Dec. 21, 2017. Photo by Chris Szagola/AP Photo.
And they were unafraid to stand up and say, "This is not okay."
I knew that before we could fully focus on the task at hand–fighting for a national title—I needed to fight for them. I had to speak truth to power under the brightest spotlight. This was not a fight about a better weight room or better swag bags. Those were just symptoms of the problem. The problem was respect. As coaches, we challenged an organization that promotes "togetherness" and "equality" to actually deliver on those values in the spaces they oversaw.
Dawn Staley celebrates with her team after winning the 2022 NCAA tournament. Photo by Eric Gay/AP Photo.
A few months later, as my legal team began my contract negotiations with the university, at the front of my mind was the awareness that I could not fight for something nationally that I was not willing to fight for on my own campus.
My job is no different than that of a male basketball coach. The expectations put on me for my teams to be successful are no different. The level of grit, diligence, innovation and dedication needed to make my program successful is no different. My pay should be no different.
It was a fight. I could no longer afford to take a back seat. I met the moment, and I was determined not to waver. Eventually, South Carolina stood up and accepted the challenge of being a leader in this area.
Humbly, I have contributed greatly to the advancement of my sport because I have chosen to speak up against discrimination and inequity. I have had my life threatened because I am vocal about what is right.
Discipline is what has earned the gold medals, championships, trophies and accolades. Our discipline deserves recognition.
The difference for women is that we are women. It’s not enough to just have discipline. We have to contend with barriers beyond our control—systems designed to exclude us, boards that create rules that are based, not on sweat equity, but on upholding historical biases and practices.
Female athletes deserve better. Women deserve better.
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