Global Courant 2023-04-11 11:00:00
House Republicans will vote next week on legislation aimed at keeping biological men out of girls’ and women’s sports at colleges, universities and public schools across the country.
The Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act was introduced by Rep. Greg Steube, a Florida Republican who says it’s time to “save women’s sports” from biological men who have “no place” to compete against women.
The vote comes as the debate over transgender rights and the effect of those rights on American culture continues to spark controversy. Just last week, NCAA champion swimmer and spokesperson for the Independent Women’s Forum Riley Gaines was attacked by protesters at San Francisco State University when she argued against transgender female athletes being allowed to compete against biological female athletes.
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House Speaker Kevin McCarthy will vote this month on legislation backed by NCAA champion swimmer Riley Gaines to prevent transgender female athletes from competing against biological female athletes. (Tom Williams / CQ-Roll Call Inc. via Getty Images / File | Rich von Biberstein / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images / File)
Gaines said she supported Steube’s bill when he introduced it this year.
“As an athlete who has experienced the injustice of competing against a man firsthand, I am grateful for Representative Steube’s leadership,” Gaines wrote. “He has made it clear that he will fight for fairness, privacy and safety for girls and women in sports.”
Under Steube’s bill, educational institutions receiving Title IX funding from the federal government would “not be allowed to allow a person of male gender to participate in an athletic program or activity designed for women or girls.”
The bill says an athlete’s sex would only be recognized by their “reproductive biology and genetics at birth.” The legislation would allow transgender female athletes to train or practice in an all-girls athletic program, but only if no biological female athlete is denied a place on the roster.
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Rep. Greg Steube, R-Fla., says transgender women have “no place” to compete against biological female athletes, and he wants to require all Title IX institutions to ban their participation. (Patrick Semansky/AP Photo/Bloomberg via Getty Images/File)
Steube said his bill is needed to fight back against an invasion of “awakened” policies across the country that go against the spirit of Title IX, which was designed to encourage women’s sports.
“The policies of the awakened, progressive left have infiltrated schools and campuses across America,” Steube wrote in March. “Allowing biological males onto women’s sports teams and into their locker rooms creates an unfair competitive environment for female athletes.”
“Americans deserve the chance to see where their elected representatives stand on this incredibly important issue,” he added. “I look forward to voting in favor of this legislation soon to save women’s sports on the House floor.”
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The legislation has already divided Congress as Democrats have made it clear that most or all will oppose the bill on the floor. The House Education and Workforce Committee passed the legislation by a vote of 25 to 17 — every Republican voting in favor and only Democrats voting against.
Republicans argued that the Biden administration is hurting women’s athletics not only by supporting the participation of transgender women, but also by seeking an amendment to Title IX that would reinforce the idea that athletic programs should allow transgender athletes to participate in the sport that fits their gender identity.
Republicans say the Biden administration is destroying women’s sports by allowing transgender women to compete against biological women. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images/File)
The House Education and Workforce Committee passed the bill, along with a report on the measure stating that efforts to allow transgender women to play alongside biological women undermines the purpose of Title IX.
“Allowing men to participate in women’s athletic activities undermines the progress women and girls have made since the enactment of Title IX and uses a groundbreaking anti-discrimination statute to discriminate against the very people it was designed to protect,” the report said.
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House GOP leaders are allowing all members to propose amendments to the bill, which must be introduced this week for it to be considered.