Transgender Athletes

This is a tricky and sensitive topic. Goal is a discussion of how to regulate. The primary challenge is transgender females competing in women’s sports. There is almost no discussion of transgender women participating in men’s sports. Nearly half of the states have taken the lead with many states banning transgender participation outright. A few have taken more nuanced approaches. The non-culture war issues are fairness and does it weaken Title IX. Individual facts and circumstances matter. Utah unlike many states have taken the nuanced approach. Rather than a full-on exclusion or inclusion they have created a commission to determine participation. In fairness, due to political pressure a ban was included in the original legislation at the last minute. A lawsuit has sidelined the ban and thus the commission is in place.

In the wake of transgender swimmer Lia Thomas busting records, a wave of laws banning trans athletes gripped America. In the space of 27 months, 18 different states passed legislation to this effect. Below are some pieces that have been written on that. Some claim that Lia Thomas can’t play because it is unfair to women. Others claim Lia Thomas is a woman, and banning Lia is denying her humanity (league that matches their gender identity).

Below is a timeline of the above mentioned states as they passed legislation banning transgender athletes.

Idea of a clash, interest of either or or both.

Olympic medalists have said “surely there are accommodations that we can all agree on that would welcome them into the space but not take the opportunity away from others”.

Footnotes at the bottom. Discussion of these things, for more on (Link).

Top an unnecessary clash, pick either or idea,

Figure 1

These laws shown above have been enacted in the space of three years.  Roughly half the people in the United States now live in a jurisdiction that regulates transgender athletes’ participation in sports. 

Figure 2

With these states passing transgender athlete bans, the Biden Administration has taken action. The Department of Education has made it clear that they can secure compliance by ‘‘the termination of or refusal to grant or to continue assistance,’’ or ‘‘by any other means authorized by law.’’ (20 U.S.C. 1682). Because of this threat to funding, the Biden Administration carries a big stick as many states receive millions if not billions of federal funding. Below you will see a chart of federal funding to states with transgender athlete bans that may be revoked by the Biden Administration Department of Education. Billions of dollars at stake, regulations set, funds can be stripped.

Figure 3

Perhaps the most tragic aspect of the culture war is that it leads us to believe that we have to pick between important human rights. This is simply not true. All human rights deserve dignity. Carefully constructed laws can mesh rights that are often seen as in conflict with one another. We are lead to believe that with this issue there no middle way to be found, but we believe to have found a path to inclusion and respect for all people.

State Bills

For more, see these events:

(list of upcoming events) Oxford, Bonavero, Cambridge Union

For more on blending of rights, see below:

Robin Fretwell Wilson (September 2018)- Religious Freedom, LGBT Rights, and the Prospects for Common Ground (Introduction)

J. Stuart Adams and Robin Fretwell Wilson (July 2022) - Human Rights for All: From Culture War to Not a War at All