Congressional Republicans introduced a bill this week that aims to block trans youth from participating in school sports.
Introduced by House Rep. Greg Steube (R-Florida), the bill seeks to restrict funding to athletic organizations that allow trans students to participate in sex-segregated programs. The new bill, HR 426, states that “sex shall be recognized solely on a person’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth.” So, how would the school determine a student’s reproductive biology? The bill offers no details about that process.
In a press release, Steube claims that the bill will ensure “a fair playing field” when it comes to school sports. It goes on to talk about the practice of allowing trans students into sports, stating, “These unfair policies discount the hard work and determination put in by our female athletes and give biological male athletes an unfair advantage in joining teams, setting records and earning scholarships.”
Despite claiming that trans people are setting records and taking scholarships, there is no data in the press release or the text of the bill to support that claim.
Thirteen republicans have co-sponsored the bill in the House of Representatives, many with a history of anti-LGTBQ views.
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, a group that opposes rights for the LGBTQ community, is named as a proponent of the bill in the press release. The organization believes homosexuality is not natural, and they support harmful conversion therapy practices on trans youth.
The democratically controlled House and Senate are unlikely to pass the bill into law.
Around the country, states are passing similar bills. Last year, in Idaho, republicans passed a similar measure that barred trans women from competing in women’s sports. Recently, Montana’s House of Representatives passed two bills, known as the “Save Women’s Sports Act,” which would not allow trans women to compete on teams of their gender. These bills will now advance to the Montana Senate.
According to the LGTBQ Advocacy group Freedom For All Americans, similar legislation is being tabled in New Hampshire, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky, and Oklahoma.
These bills offer no evidence of the unfairness in sports they claim to be stopping. Bills like these get passed to send the message to the trans community that they are not welcome and that they are not valid.
Image Courtesy of Ted Eytan Via Flickr
