Wise Old Man wrote:
Why is not a compromise to allow trans participation at the level of HS sports, but to adopt WA rules at the college level and beyond? HS sports, even varsity, are far more about education, sportsmanship, camaraderie, team work etc then they are about golds and championships. HS sports are firmly embedded under the framework of the school experience. In the school setting, inclusion should be paramount. In T&F at least there are no safety issues and since the bans/restrictions are in place at the college level, there’s no lack of access to scholarships and those sorts of benefits. The extreme position would be unrestricted trans athlete access at the WA level. HS age people competing at WA events, like world juniors etc, would be governed by WA rules.
Maybe this is how HS Sports are supposed to be, but in reality they are not.
Every time a trans athlete wins anything (no matter small it might be), it is reported as an assault on women's rights, jeopardizes the physical safety of all trans people (not just trans athletes), drives the fund raising for rightwing political candidates, and increases the chances of more anti-LGBTQ laws enacted both at the state and federal levels. Not only that, it will probably increase the restrictions of more rights for cis women and girls by those same politicians and judges. Are medals and trophies in HS sports really worth for all that?
What's wrong with enforcing the same policy as the WA's at the HS level? At least in states like California, minors are not denied age appropriate gender affirming care. If you didn't start medical transition before puberty, that was out of choice, and not because of the lack of access.
And what' wrong with limiting the trans athletes' participation to JV? If it is about participation, the level should not matter, or should it?