Culture wars are nothing new, neither is the scapegoating of trans women.
So the bans against trans women in sports, while disappointing, is not surprising.
A bill that would enact a nation-wide ban on trans athletes from participating in women’s sports passed in the U.S. House Education and Workforce Committee, according to a March 9 Nebraska Examiner article.
The bill, H.R. 734, would make it a Title IX violation for federally funded institutions to allow trans women to compete on female sports teams, according to the same article.
Not only is this ban cruel, it would be targeting an extremely small number of people.
There are approximately 32 out trans athletes participating in collegiate sports, according to the same article.
I can’t even begin to comprehend the pain transgender people have to deal with on the day-to-day with their very existence being openly debated and denied.
But bans like this are not unique to the House.
On Friday, World Athletics banned trans women from participating in the female category of track and field, according to a March 23 Outsports article.
It also tightened the restrictions for intersex athletes to participate.
Intersex is a term used to describe people who are born with both male and female sex characteristics, according to Planned Parenthood.
On Wednesday, Kansas passed HB 2238, which would ban trans women from female sports teams, according to a Buzzfeed article from the same day.
But not all hope is lost.
The International Olympic Committee stopped requiring trans athletes to undergo hormone treatments, according to a Nov. 16, 2021 NBC article.
This is what rules surrounding trans athletes should be.
A common argument for bans such as this is that allowing trans women to compete is unfair to their cis opponents.
What kind of gender essentialism bullshit is that?
Gender essentialism is the idea that gender and gender-based characteristics are intrinsically linked to the sex a person is assigned at birth, according to a Healthline article.
In other words, there are irrefutable differences between men and women. Nothing will change that.
Some people like to make this seem such as some big feminist revelation, but it’s not. It’s just a way of othering and excluding trans people.
When I was a child, the big feminist idea was that girls could do everything boys could.
I still believe this.
Another common argument is that there should be a separate league for trans athletes instead of allowing them to compete against cis athletes.
How feasible would this be?
Let’s assume – and we’ll be generous – there are 300 trans athletes in college sports, which is about 10 times the amount of out trans college athletes, spread out amongst all the college sports.
No way would that be enough players to form a league for any sport.
But also, that would be othering for those athletes. It would be telling them, “You’re different and can’t be included in the general population.”
People also like to claim that male athletes will claim to be women in order to get fame and fortune as a top-performing female athlete.
Because everyone knows that female athletes are so well paid and respected.
And transitioning is so easy and quick.
But moreover, attacks on trans athletes are just a way politicians try to win political points.
When trans swimmer Lia Thomas became the first transgender athlete to win a NCAA championship, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said he would "reject these lies and recognize" that the “rightful winner” was Florida resident and second place winner Emma Weyant, according to a March 22, 2022 NBC article.
It’s important to note that this proclamation did jack shit. He does not have the power to declare the winner to any NCAA competition.
Florida is the third most populous state, doesn’t he have anything better to do?
Probably.
But this is just another example of a politician throwing trans people under the bus in order to get political clout.
We need to stand up to this bullshit. And the best way you can right now is by calling your representatives and letting them know that you do not stand with bans on trans athletes. You don’t stand with transphobia. And you do not support H.R. 734.
