Despite hours of emotional testimony to lawmakers on why not to pass the bill, Texas’ newest piece of anti-trans legislation, House Bill 25, was approved by a House committee last week and heads to the full Texas House, where it is likely to pass.
The bill would prohibit transgender student athletes from joining school sports teams aligned with their gender identity and the House Select Committee on Constitutional Rights and Remedies approved along party lines with a 8-4 vote. The bill would only allow student athletes at public schools to play on sports teams that correspond with the sex listed on their birth certificate at, or near the time of, birth.
The Lone Star State has enjoyed plenty of time in the news recently for its legislators’ abhorrent decisions, sparking national outrage with its abortion ban that essentially deemed Roe v. Wade useless at the beginning of September, along with yet another anti-trans bill from the Senate, essentially looking to do the same damage as HB 25.
The University Interscholastic League governs public school sports in Texas and already requires that an athlete’s gender be determined by the birth certificate, though they also accept legally modified birth certificates where students officially changed their gender to align with their gender identity. If the new bill becomes law, it would no longer allow for the acceptance of legally modified birth certificates.
Republican lawmakers say this type of legislation protects cisgender women’s rights under Title IX, parts of HB 25 claiming that the participation of trans girls on teams of mostly cis girls presents safety hazards for cis girls and prevents them from obtaining athletic scholarships.
Though, medical professionals have largely debunked the arguments that trans-feminine people on testosterone have a competitive advantage. One study showed people taking hormones has no significant performance edge in distance running.
Dr. Eric Vilain, a pediatrician and geneticist who studies sex difference in athletes, also says, “The science of whether testosterone in real life is actually providing an advantage in competition is not clearly established,” in an NPR interview conducted earlier this year.
LGBTQ athletic advocates, like Athlete Ally’s Director of Policy and Programs Anne Lieberman, also note that, while these bills are often framed to protect the rights of cis female athletes, most of these active athletes are advocating for mental health support, pay equity, and sponsorship deals; they aren’t concerned about trans competition.
“They’re horrified that, you know, kids are being used as political punching bags and bargaining chips,” Lieberman tells OFM, “and people who have spent their lives, especially cis women athletes, you know, dedicating their lives to sport, have said, ‘Not in my name. I don’t want people saying that this is what women athletes want, because we’ve always been a stronger, more impactful global sports community when we are inclusive and empowering to everyone.’”
Lieberman also says anti-trans bills targeting youth athletes are essentially just updated “bathroom bills,” aimed to warp the narrative of trans people to seem scary or predatory in relation to the American public, many of whom have never met a trans person face-to-face (that they know of).
Other opponents of the legislation point out how these bills are hurting the mental health of children who are already vulnerable. The hours of testimony from numerous parents of trans youth touched on this, including Amber Briggle, the mother of a 13-year-old trans boy.
“He’s 13; he shouldn’t have to deal with that,” Briggle says. “I want him to go to gymnastics. I want to go to taekwondo. I want him to do well in school, and I don’t want to have him worry about this because I saw how much it harmed him in April and May.”
Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick has said in past statements that he will continue to push for the transgender sports bill until it becomes law.
Though, many individuals and entities in Texas have spoken out against the legislation as well. Texas Completes is a coalition of 1,500 business organizations and re-released an open letter this week saying it was against legislation targeting the LGBTQ community. Amazon, Dell Technologies, and Microsoft were among the major employers that signed on to the letter.
