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Connecticut high school athletes file complaint over transgender policy

Emsmom1Emsmom1 1008 replies80 threads Senior Member
in Athletic Recruits
Thoughts? Is it fair for transgender females to compete against biological females (I'm not sure if this is the correct term; maybe cisgender females?) in sports?
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Replies to: Connecticut high school athletes file complaint over transgender policy

  • sensation723sensation723 571 replies1 threads Member
    It depends on the sport. IMO track isn't one of them sports. It's a no contact sport. The biggest deal here to me is one minute you have women fighting to have their sports respected just like men sports claiming they are just as good. Then you have law suits like this that IMO completely contradict that statement. So the next time a female wants to play on a men sports team with the claim she just as good the nay sayers can use this law suit as exhibit A to support their views.
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  • 3kids2dogs3kids2dogs 461 replies25 threads Member
    The next time that a human being competes in High School as a different gender than their birth solely for the purpose of getting an advantage in the sport will be the first time.
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  • roycroftmomroycroftmom 4597 replies40 threads Senior Member
    edited July 2019
    Regardless of the student's primary purpose in competing, there really is no point in high testosterone persons competing athletically with low testosterone folks, no matter how they style themselves. If they need to make the athletic league distinctions based on testosterone rather than current assumed gender identity, so be it. Otherwise the cis-women might as well stay home in track.
    edited July 2019
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  • Sue22Sue22 6928 replies121 threads Super Moderator
    Many colleges that allow students given a male gender assignment at birth to compete on a woman's team require that they have undergone a year of hormone therapy. That seems fair to me.

    There's no easy answer to high school sports. If a high school allows a student with the greater muscle mass provided by testosterone to compete as a woman it seems unfair, yet how can we require students who present as female to compete as men?Most high school students have not yet undergone gender reassignment or even hormone therapy, but I can't imagine what it would be like as a transgender woman to have to use the men's locker room. That seems like a disaster in the making to me.

    As @3kids2dogs, astutely points out, no one is going though posing as female in order to gain an advantage in athletics.
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  • roycroftmomroycroftmom 4597 replies40 threads Senior Member
    Regardless of their motivation, the result is the same-a high testosterone person has an enormous advantage over low testosterone people. I understand that is not the student's primary motivation, but that doesn't change the result. It doesn't just seem unfair, it is unfair.
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  • toomanyteenstoomanyteens 1170 replies70 threads Senior Member
    It isn't JUST about testosterone - men and women's bodies are built differently and thus perform differently in athletic (and other) situations including those that require strength and speed (ie all sports) -- it is blatantly unfair to females to have to compete athletically against people BORN with the physical characteristics of a male. Most females could never compete. It is anti- women rights; and as someone who has female athletes it makes me sad.
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  • roethlisburgerroethlisburger 3149 replies177 threads Senior Member
    The simple solution is to eliminate separate men’s and women’s sports. Make all teams open to all genders.
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  • twoinanddonetwoinanddone 24947 replies20 threads Senior Member
    Right, having only co-ed teams would be really fair.
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  • ucbalumnusucbalumnus 83786 replies743 threads Senior Member
    You can see the variation in state policies for K-12 athletes here:
    https://www.transathlete.com/k-12
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