SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Utah transgender girls will participate in women’s sports as the new school year begins after a judge on Friday overturned a ban pending legal challenges from their parents. You are given the opportunity.
Instead of an outright ban, transgender girls are submitted to a state board of political appointees who decide on a case-by-case basis whether they are eligible to participate. We have created a committee in legislation passed prior to this as a fallback plan to be implemented in case there is.
The law allows the commission to ask and assess a child’s height and weight when making decisions about whether a transgender girl has an unfair advantage. It will be convened and will include medical data statisticians, physicians with experience in gender identity health care, sports physiologists, mental health professionals, college athletic trainers, representatives from sports associations, and rotating committee members. increase. Members who are coaches or officials of the sports involved in each case.
The Utah ruling marks the latest court development in the national debate on how to navigate the flashpoint issue.
At least a dozen Republican-led states, including Utah, have passed laws banning transgender women and girls in sports on the premise that they gain an unfair competitive advantage. did. Trans rights advocates counter that the rules aren’t just about sports, they’re another way to insult and attack transgender youth. A similar lawsuit is underway.
Utah’s ban took effect in July after the state’s Republican legislature overturned a veto by Governor Spencer Cox, also a Republican.
Utah Judge Keith Kelly said in his ruling that attorneys representing the families of three transgender student-athletes who filed the lawsuit were to “single them out for their unfavorable treatment as transgender girls.” , said it indicated that they were in great pain.
A transgender girl and her parents filed a lawsuit last May, claiming they violated equal rights and due process guaranteed by the Utah Constitution.
The ruling was heartening news for the girls and their families, said Shannon Minter, legal director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights.
“The pressure and burden that this put on them was huge,” Minter said. “Having that weight lifted is just a huge relief.”
Republican Utah Senator Stuart Adams said in a statement Friday that the committee would make decisions in a way that “protects fair and safe competition while preserving the integrity of women’s sport.” .
Minter said he hopes the committee will make a fair decision, keep the process confidential, and come up with a good solution. He hopes the commission will act as a mere safety net, postulating that transgender girls will be allowed to play as long as there are no obvious issues with the fairness of the competition.
“How it is done is very important,” Minter said.
The ruling follows what the Utah High School Activity Association revealed this week after a female athlete was asked by the parents of two female athletes who lost in a competition if the female athlete was transgender. After scrutinizing her school records dating back to kindergarten, the association and the girl’s high school determined that she was indeed a woman. and association spokesman David Spatafor told lawmakers this week. rice field. salt lake tribune report.
At Thursday’s monthly press conference, Gov. Cox said the parents’ complaints about the girl being investigated had crossed the line.
“Oh my god, we live in this world and we’ve become terrible losers and we’re looking for reasons why our kid lost,” he said. “Making up such a claim is quite disturbing to me,” he said.
Spatafore refused to reveal the student’s grade, school, or sport to protect her identity. He said he had not been informed of the investigation because his parents could be contacted “if necessary.”
Spatafor also said the association has investigated other complaints involving transgender athletes in an effort to comply with Utah law that went into effect in July. When you don’t look feminine” etc. No complaints have been confirmed.
Prior to the ban, Utah had one transgender female athlete registered on the high school team last year, Spatafor said.
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