US Lawmakers Debate Ban on Trans Girls in Sports
2021-03-10
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1Lawmakers in the American state of Mississippi passed a measure last week to ban transgender athletes from joining competitive female sports teams.
2Similar bills are under consideration in more than 20 legislatures around the United States.
3Supporters of the proposed bans say transgender girls are naturally stronger and faster because they are biologically male.
4They argue this gives them an unfair edge over competitors born as girls.
5The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is an organization that supports and defends individual rights.
6The organization called the proposed bans "a coordinated attack on trans student athletes."
7It said the "proposed laws discriminate against trans youth in ways that compromise their health, social and emotional development, and safety. They also raise a host of privacy concerns."
8The proposed state bans - supported by Republicans - could go against part of a federal education law barring sex discrimination and high court rulings on the issue.
9In addition, others say an executive order signed by President Joe Biden, a Democrat, bars discrimination based on gender identity in school sports and elsewhere.
10Nationwide, 19 American states permit full inclusion of trans athletes; 16 have no clear state policy; seven require trans girls to take female hormones; and eight ban trans girls from girls' teams.
11That information comes from the National Center for Lesbian Rights.
12There is no official count of how many trans athletes have competed in high school or college sports.
13State high school and college athletic associations do not collect that information.
14In states that do collect it, the numbers are low-no more than five students currently in Kansas and nine in Ohio over five years.
15Transgender adults make up a small percentage of the U.S. population, about 1.3 million as of 2016.
16That information comes from the Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law that specializes in research on LGBTQ issues.
17People who oppose the growing attention and rights for transgender people, though, say that new laws are needed to keep the sports fair for cisgender girls.
18In Connecticut, a federal court is hearing a legal action seeking to block transgender girls from participating in girls' sports.
19It centers on two transgender girl sprinters: Terry Miller and Andraya Yearwood.
20They have often performed better than their cisgender competitors.
21"When the law does not recognize differences between men and women, we've seen that women lose," said Christiana Holcomb.
22She is a lawyer for the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) which filed the legal action in February 2020.
23The ADF and groups like it are helping the ban campaigns of lawmakers.
24When asked for other examples of complaints about middle or high school transgender athletes, ban supporters gave two.
25One involved a Hawaii female coach who complained last year over a trans girl competing in girls' sports.
26The other involved a cisgender girl in Alaska who defeated a trans runner in 2016.
27She said the trans girl's third-place finish was unfair to runners who were further behind.
28Only one state, Idaho, has enacted a law limiting trans students' sports participation.
29And that 2020 measure was blocked by a court ruling.
30The bills under consideration by state legislatures this year, however, could prove harmful for transgender athletes.
31In Utah, a 12-year-old transgender girl cried when she heard about the proposal, which would separate her from her friends.
32She is shorter than some of the other girls on the swim team and has worked hard to improve her times, her coach said.
33But she is not the strongest swimmer in her age group.
34"Other than body parts, I've been a girl my whole life," she said.
35The girl and her family spoke with The Associated Press on the condition that her name not be shared publicly.
36In New Jersey, 14-year-old Rebekah Bruesehoff competes on her middle school field hockey team.
37"I know what it's like to have my gender questioned," Rebekah said.
38"I don't want others to go through that."
39New Jersey has a trans-inclusive sports policy.
40But other states could force athletes to take tests to prove their gender.
41That was one of the reasons 17-year-old Truman Hamburger protested a bill before the North Dakota legislature.
42"Once you open up that door on gender policing," that's not a door you can easily close, he said.
43Sarah Huckman is a 20-year-old student at the University of New Hampshire.
44She competed in running for three years after coming out as trans in the seventh grade.
45The proposed bans sicken her.
46"We're all human beings," she said. "We do sports for the love of it."
47I'm Alice Bryant. And I'm Dan Friedell.
1Lawmakers in the American state of Mississippi passed a measure last week to ban transgender athletes from joining competitive female sports teams. Similar bills are under consideration in more than 20 legislatures around the United States. 2Supporters of the proposed bans say transgender girls are naturally stronger and faster because they are biologically male. They argue this gives them an unfair edge over competitors born as girls. 3The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is an organization that supports and defends individual rights. The organization called the proposed bans "a coordinated attack on trans student athletes." It said the "proposed laws discriminate against trans youth in ways that compromise their health, social and emotional development, and safety. They also raise a host of privacy concerns." 4The proposed state bans - supported by Republicans - could go against part of a federal education law barring sex discrimination and high court rulings on the issue. In addition, others say an executive order signed by President Joe Biden, a Democrat, bars discrimination based on gender identity in school sports and elsewhere. 5How widespread is it? 6Nationwide, 19 American states permit full inclusion of trans athletes; 16 have no clear state policy; seven require trans girls to take female hormones; and eight ban trans girls from girls' teams. That information comes from the National Center for Lesbian Rights. 7There is no official count of how many trans athletes have competed in high school or college sports. State high school and college athletic associations do not collect that information. In states that do collect it, the numbers are low-no more than five students currently in Kansas and nine in Ohio over five years. 8Transgender adults make up a small percentage of the U.S. population, about 1.3 million as of 2016. That information comes from the Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law that specializes in research on LGBTQ issues. 9People who oppose the growing attention and rights for transgender people, though, say that new laws are needed to keep the sports fair for cisgender girls. 10In Connecticut, a federal court is hearing a legal action seeking to block transgender girls from participating in girls' sports. It centers on two transgender girl sprinters: Terry Miller and Andraya Yearwood. They have often performed better than their cisgender competitors. 11"When the law does not recognize differences between men and women, we've seen that women lose," said Christiana Holcomb. She is a lawyer for the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) which filed the legal action in February 2020. 12The ADF and groups like it are helping the ban campaigns of lawmakers. When asked for other examples of complaints about middle or high school transgender athletes, ban supporters gave two. 13One involved a Hawaii female coach who complained last year over a trans girl competing in girls' sports. The other involved a cisgender girl in Alaska who defeated a trans runner in 2016. She said the trans girl's third-place finish was unfair to runners who were further behind. 14Only one state, Idaho, has enacted a law limiting trans students' sports participation. And that 2020 measure was blocked by a court ruling. 15Effects of proposed ban 16The bills under consideration by state legislatures this year, however, could prove harmful for transgender athletes. 17In Utah, a 12-year-old transgender girl cried when she heard about the proposal, which would separate her from her friends. She is shorter than some of the other girls on the swim team and has worked hard to improve her times, her coach said. But she is not the strongest swimmer in her age group. 18"Other than body parts, I've been a girl my whole life," she said. 19The girl and her family spoke with The Associated Press on the condition that her name not be shared publicly. 20In New Jersey, 14-year-old Rebekah Bruesehoff competes on her middle school field hockey team. "I know what it's like to have my gender questioned," Rebekah said. "I don't want others to go through that." 21New Jersey has a trans-inclusive sports policy. But other states could force athletes to take tests to prove their gender. That was one of the reasons 17-year-old Truman Hamburger protested a bill before the North Dakota legislature. 22"Once you open up that door on gender policing," that's not a door you can easily close, he said. 23Sarah Huckman is a 20-year-old student at the University of New Hampshire. She competed in running for three years after coming out as trans in the seventh grade. The proposed bans sicken her. 24"We're all human beings," she said. "We do sports for the love of it." 25I'm Alice Bryant. And I'm Dan Friedell. 26Alice Bryant adapted the story for Learning English with reporting from the Associated Press. Hai Do was the editor. 27________________________________________________________________ 28Words in This Story 29transgender - adj. of or relating to people who feel that their true nature does not match their sex at birth 30athlete - n. a person who is trained in or good at sports, games, or exercises that require physical skill and strength 31hormone - n. a natural substance that is produced in the body and that influences the way the body grows or develops 32association - n. an organized group of people who have the same interest or job 33LGBTQ - adj. lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer 34coach - n. a person who teaches and trains the members of a sports team and makes decisions about how the team plays during games 35cisgender - adj. relating to a person whose sense of personal identity and gender matches their birth sex 36sprinter - n. a runner who runs fast-paced races for short distances 37field hockey - n. outdoor game played by two teams who use sticks to hit a small, hard ball into their opponent's goal