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 |  Subject: The Good: Local legislators decry transgenders in female sports  Sat Apr 24, 2021 2:16 am | |
| After the Oklahoma House on Monday, April 19, passed Senate Bill 2, the Save Women’s Sports Act, it will be up to the Senate to decide whether it hits the governor’s desk.
The bill would require certain sports teams to be designated based on an athlete’s biological sex, preventing transgender women and girls from competing in female sports. Proponents argue it would provide a level playing field for women’s athletics, but opponents say transgender athletes should have the right to participate in sports consistent with their gender identity.
State Rep. Toni Hasenbeck, R-Elgin, who authored the legislation, said there’s a reason why sports are split between men and women in.
“Sports are a fantastic opportunity for our young people to learn the value of hard work and what it means to be part of a team, as well as keep them physically fit,” she said. “However, the bodies of biological men have a competitive advantage over the bodies of biological women. Science tells us males are generally bigger, faster, and stronger than females.”
ACLU Oklahoma said the legislation discriminates against transgender youth and compromises their health, social and emotional development.
“It’s not about sports,” the ACLU Oklahoma statement said. “It’s about erasing and excluding transgender people from participation in all aspects of public life. It’s about creating ‘solutions’ to ‘problems’ that don’t exist, and... harming some of the most vulnerable young people in Oklahoma.”
In various levels of competition, transgender women have won championships in recent years, which has given rise to concerns of Hasenback and others. However, there have also been instances wherein transgender women have underperformed against women athletes who are “cisgender” – the same gender with which they were identified at birth.
State Rep. Bob Ed Culver, R-Tahlequah, voted for the bill, citing a history of watching his own family progress through sports.
“Typically, it’s males wanting to participate in female sports,” he said. “As a father of a daughter who played competitive basketball, who worked her tail off to get to this point and excel at it, I’m against that.”
The bill has raised concerns that the state could lose its opportunity to host collegiate championships, like the Women’s College World Series softball tournament, held in Oklahoma City every year. The NCAA Board of Governors released a statement prior to the House’s approval that “when determining where championships are held, NCAA policy directs that only locations where hosts can commit to providing an environment that is safe, healthy and free of discrimination should be selected.”
While that factor could give senators pause when deliberating on the bill, State Sen. Dewayne Pemberton, R-Muskogee, doesn’t think it will prevent it from passing.
“If you believe in it, you have to stand up for what you believe in,” he said. “If it costs you the women’s softball world championship, so be it. The ones who are having a question about it are people who are afraid they’re going to lose some economics as a result of it. But if it hits the floor, I look for it to pass.”
The bill’s original version had nothing to do with women’s athletics, but was related to school finances and per-pupil expenditures. The Senate passed it on March 1, but it was believed to have died after being sent to the House. But legislators revived the bill by gutting its initial language and replacing it with the Save Women’s Sports Act. It’s a tactic Pemberton said he’s seen used more this session than ever.
“It used to be rare,” he said. “This year, I’ve never seen so much of it. I don’t like it. I’ve never used it and don’t plan on using it. I think it’s an underhanded way to get what you want.”
But Pemberton still sides with Hasenbeck and the legislation.
“Males are physically superior to women, just because of their genetics and because of the way their body and muscle mass is,” he said. “It comes down to a fairness issue. Is it fair for a biological male to participate against a biological female in an athletic contest? Personally, I don’t think it’s fair.”
Differences in genetic makeup and reproductive anatomy between transgender and cisgender women are not indicators of athletic performance, argue the bill’s detractors. The NCAA said while it “firmly and unequivocally” supports transgender athletes competing in college sports, its policy to provide an inclusive path requires testosterone suppression treatment for transgender women to compete.
“There is a lot of misinformation in ‘common knowledge’ about what constitutes biological sex and gender,” said Dell Barnes, Cherokee County Democratic Party vice char. “Competent athletic organizations have been navigating the topic for years, and the Legislature’s reactionary guidance is wholly unnecessary. I would like to see our children no longer dragged into these culture wars.”
Barnes also added that the legislation could create a slippery slope with regard to racism, giving credibility to “bad genetic theories and thinking.”
“We’re not that far from those times,” he said. “You can imagine if anti-trans policies passed, some redneck is sooner or later going to talk about parsing athletes by race, etc., under the umbrella of perceived ‘genetics’ arguments.”
The House added an aamendment that would require a parent or legal guardian to sign an affidavit stating what their child’s biological sex was at birth. The Senate will have until the end of the session to approve the amendment and legislation.
Shannon Grimes, Cherokee County Libertarian Party chair, said there are valid concerns on both sides of the issue.
“On one hand, you don’t want to discourage and bar the young from opportunities to participate in activities,” he said. “On the other hand, there are physiological differences between male and female sexes, whether they identify as cis or trans. I don’t know if there is a solution that would be equitable for all parties.”
Cherokee County Republican Party Chair Josh Owen did not return calls by press time.
.https://www.tahlequahdailypress.com/news/political-roundup-local-legislators-decry-transgenders-in-female-sports/article_7ea23f98-c299-50a9-87f3-5a83c21a9282.html
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