The battle over transgender athletes’ participation in youth sports has reached California, where state lawmakers will debate two bills on Tuesday aimed at keeping trans kids and teens off sports teams consistent with their gender identity. One bill would reverse a 2013 law allowing students to participate on a sex-segregated sports team that aligns with their gender identity, while the other would ban students assigned male at birth from participating on girls’ sports teams. The bills, backed by Republicans, will be discussed in the Democrat-controlled state Assembly’s Committee on Arts, Entertainment, Sports and Tourism.
The debate comes after Transgender Day of Visibility and Governor Gavin Newsom’s controversial comments questioning the fairness of transgender athletes participating in girls’ sports. At least 24 states have laws banning transgender women and girls from certain sports competitions, with President Donald Trump also signing an executive order on the issue.
Education Secretary Linda McMahon has weighed in on the proposed ban in California, requesting that Newsom clarify his stance and support the bill reversing the 2013 law. The U.S. Department of Education has also announced an investigation into the state education department over a law prohibiting school districts from informing parents if a student changes their gender identity at school.
The debate over transgender rights, including bans on gender-affirming care and disclosure of students’ gender identity to parents without consent, continues to be a divisive issue in the United States.
Note: The image is for illustrative purposes only and is not the original image of the presented article.
