U.S. Representative Patsy Mink lived in a man’s world. But she pushed through the political barriers in Congress to pass Title IX, a 1972 law that created equal rights for girls and women in all aspects of education, including sports.
That legacy is kept alive by her daughter Wendy (Gwendolyn) Mink, who co-authored a political biography of her mother in 2022 with Judy Tzu-Chun Wu called Fierce and Fearless: Patsy Takemoto Mink, First Woman of Color in Congress.
Gwendolyn (Wendy) Mink co-authored her mom's biography.
Patsy Mink was the first Japanese-American woman to practice law in Hawaiʻi and the first woman of color and of Asian descent to be elected to Congress. She served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1965 to 1977 and then again in 1990 until her death in 2022.
Wendy Mink, who lives in Washington, D.C., was a professor of politics at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and a professor of women and gender studies at Smith College in Massachusetts. We talked to Mink about her mother’s legacy, the impact of Title IX, and why protecting that progress still matters.
When you watch girls and women sports, do you think of your mom and how her championing for equal rights opened so many doors for them?
Absolutely. I always think of my mom when I watch girls and women in athletic activities or competition. When Title IX was enacted, nobody predicted the scale of opportunity and excellence that it would make possible – in sports as well as in academic and vocational pursuits. Nor did anyone predict that school-based athletics would bear a heavy load of controversy across the decades.
I think of my mom not only for her role in expanding possibilities for girls and women with the enactment of Title IX, but even more for her decades of advocacy for robust application of Title IX throughout the educational process.
Do you have an example of someone you know who has benefited from Title IX?
Everyone I know who has been involved in education since Title IX was enacted in 1972 has benefited from the equality and equity guarantee asserted by the legislation. Title IX opened doors to all girls and women, even those who chose not to walk through them. It led to initiatives to promote inclusion and equitable treatment. And it provided students a lever against exclusion, inequity, and sex-based subordination.
As a professor back in the day, I advocated for students who encountered sex discrimination — occasionally in athletics; more often in institutional responses to sexual harassment/sexual assault; sometimes to point out practical biases against student parents. Title IX provided a mechanism for contesting real life discrimination, giving survivors recourse for the first time.
Even after Title IX was passed, there were efforts in the U.S. Congress to weaken it. Do you see any threats to Title IX today?
My mother gave a speech in Congress in 2002 celebrating the 30th anniversary of Title IX. She reminded us that equality must be actively safeguarded and exhorted us all to be vigilant in defense of the comprehensive application of Title IX. The need for vigilance regarding Title IX is no less urgent today. The very meaning of equality, as well as the regulations and procedures designed to advance equality, are under attack.
Your mom wanted you to write her biography. Unfortunately, she didn’t live to see it happen. Do you think you were more motivated to write the book after her passing so people wouldn’t forget her legacy?
My co-author and I worked on the book for a decade. Before that, I spent a few years digging into my mother’s papers, which live at the Library of Congress. My mother’s work and contributions fed my spirit across all those years, as did the watershed historical course she helped pave. She had the privilege of living and serving during a period of significant democratization in the U.S.
Her story is a reminder that we each can make a huge difference. Shining a light on her story is in a way a part of the democratic project – giving visibility to the public accomplishments of a woman despite misogyny, of an Asian American despite racism and subordination, of a born-and-bred Hawaii daughter despite the dismissive exoticism of her day.
Wendy Mink (center) with dad, John, and mom, Patsy, during her campaign for Congress.
The book’s title, Fierce and Fearless, certainly sums up her life in just those two words. Was it an easy title to come up with?
The title felt obvious and natural once we landed on it, but it took a while to get there!
Your mom endured a lot of criticism, such as being labeled “Pink Mink” for fighting for her beliefs and causes. Was it difficult having to deal with this public scrutiny as a young child?
My mother endured a lot of bullying and name-calling, especially in the early years of her public service. She also had to weather whisper campaigns suggesting she must be a neglectful mother given her public role. I was aware of all of this.
From a very young age, I was totally into my mother’s political work. So I took a lot of the naysaying in stride. But when the naysaying spilled into my classrooms, I found it challenging. I remember a couple of schoolmates chanting “Pink Mink,” which had been popularized on a drive-time radio show. Cute rhyme, I guess. It bothered me that they thought my mom was available as their punching bag.
Patsy Mink testifying against a judicial nomination in Congress.
After losing the election for the U.S. Senate in 1976, she returned home and served on the Honolulu City Council. She could have practiced law and made more money. Instead, she continued in public service. What does that say about her integrity, desire to affect change, and passion to serve?
You capture what she was about in your question. She was dedicated to public service and to active citizenship. She also thought that all levels of government are important to the well-being of people and their communities. So while some people might have characterized her decision to serve on the City Council as a “step down,” she didn’t see it that way at all. She saw her City Council service as a great opportunity to work for and with people on policies affecting daily life.
With help from your mom, girls growing up today don’t have to think twice about getting into college or playing sports. How can we remind the new generations that it wasn’t always this way so they can appreciate trailblazing women like your mom?
We need to keep telling stories about the barriers faced by previous generations of girls and women. We need to foreground stories of trailblazing women. We need to shine a light on many, many more women’s lives. And we need to champion girls and women in the present day when they stand up to ongoing discrimination and inequality, as did the courageous Campbell High School water polo women.
A bronze sculpture of Patsy Mink by artist Holly Young was dedicated at the Hawaii State Public Library on December 6, 2018, which would have been Mink’s 91st birthday.
There were threats to lessen Title IX because colleges feared women athletics would eat into the financial gains in male-dominated sports. But Wahine volleyball is arguably one of the biggest sports in Hawaii. Is that just one example of what can be possible when given the opportunity?
Wahine volleyball is an excellent example of how opportunity reveals excellence and popularity. Unfortunately, even though opportunities to play have opened up, opportunity is often not supported with equitable resources for women’s athletics.
Do you have the same fighting spirit as your mom?
I’m an activist and advocate like my mom, but her fighting spirit was one-of-a-kind.
Read more about Patsy Mink’s Title IX and how it changed the lives of four women athletes in the fall 2026 issue of Island Scene magazine.
Photos courtesy Wendy Mink
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