Megan Rapinoe, Sue Bird, and Becky Sauerbrunn were among 40 professional, Olympian, and Paralympic athletes who signed a letter to House lawmakers opposing the Protection of Girls and Women in Sports Act.
Athlete Ally, an athlete group that supports LGBTQ+ initiatives, sent the letter Monday, according to Sports Illustrated. Athletes believe the bill would not protect women in sports, but would instead exclude women and girls from obtaining “mental and physical health benefits”.
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Megan Rapinoe and Sue Bird attend the Moet & Chandon Christmas Celebration at Lincoln Center on December 5, 2022 in New York City. (Taylor Hill/Wire Image)
“We believe that gender equality in sport is critical, which is why we urge lawmakers to focus their attention and effort on the causes women athletes have been fighting for for decades, including equal pay, an end to abuse and maltreatment, the uneven implementation of Title IX, and the lack of access and equity for girls of color and girls with disabilities, to name just a few.Our deepest hope is that transgender and intersex children never have to feel the isolation, exclusion, and otherness that HR 734 seeks to enshrine in law,” the letter says.
The Biden administration’s proposal to outright ban transgender athletes came under scrutiny last week. The proposed rule states that general prohibitions would violate Title IX. It would be difficult for schools to ban, for example, a transgender girl from playing on a girls’ baseball team.
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Megan Rapinoe gestures during a SheBelieves Cup game between the United States and Japan at GEODIS Park on February 19, 2023 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Omar Vega/Getty Images)
The proposed rule would leave room for schools to develop policies that prohibit trans athletes from playing on more competitive teams if those policies are designed to ensure fairness or prevent sports-related injuries.
Rep. Greg Steube, a Florida Republican, introduced the Protecting Women and Girls in Sports Act in February. The bill seeks an amendment to Title IX “to provide that for purposes of determining compliance with Title IX of said Act in athletics, sex shall be recognized based solely on a person’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth.” .
The bill also says that it would be a violation of the law for “a recipient of federal financial assistance that operates, sponsors, or facilitates an athletic program or activity to allow a male person to participate in an athletic program or activity that is designed to women or girls”.
President Joe Biden meets with Secretary General Antonio Guterres on September 21, 2022 at UN Headquarters. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
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House lawmakers can consider the bill next week.
