Ain’t I A Woman? -Pat GriffinBy: Emilia Orosco, Riley Stalker, and Angel Wilson Overview - Discrimination and oppression of transgender people persists in the form of regulating their participation in sport Policies which keep trans individuals from participating in sports only serve to further alienate them from society and keep them out of the public eye History of Limiting Woman in Sports Even before the topic of transgender woman in sports came to the forefront of the publics eye female athletes faced a lot of resistance. Woman who were not heterosexual, dressed in clothes that society perceives as more masucline, didn’t want a family, or were built more muscular had their validity as a female athlete questioned. Controversy and public ridicule around their eligibilty to play solely based on their sexual orientation and outer looks. History of Transgender Athletes Transgender participation in athletics has always been controversial. However, transgender females in particular have garnered much more attention than trans males in athletics. ● ● 1960s: Barr Body Test ○ Tests for inactive X chromosomes to determine an individual’s sex ○ Discovered in the 1940’s, first used in the 1968 Olympics ○ Never detected deliberate gender fakery 1970s: Renee Richards ○ Top 20 tennis player most known for the controversy around her transition in 1975 ○ Refused the Barr test and was not allowed to compete in any major tournaments ○ Sued the US Tennis Association on the basis of gender discrimination ■ Court ruled in favor of Richards, stating that the Barr body test is “grossly unfair, discriminatory and inequitable, and a violation of her rights” Current Athletes Lia Thomas Luc Esquivel Trans female swimmer from UPenn who competed on the men’s swim team for 3 years before transitioning during the pandemic. Thomas’ image has been used in Republican campaign ads alongside language such as “women’s sports are for women, not men pretending to be women” Trans male golf player who is being banned from participating in his sport because the Tennessee governor signed a bill that prevents transgender athletes from participating on the same team that their gender identity aligns with. Hormones and NCAA Eligibility “A trans female (MTF) student-athlete being treated with testosterone suppression medication for Gender Identity Disorder or gender dysphoria and/or Transsexualism, for the purposes of NCAA competition may continue to compete on a men’s team but may not compete on a women’s team without changing it to a mixed team status until completing one calendar year of testosterone suppression treatment.” Though the Barr body test never found any cis men deliberately faking their gender to gain a competitive advantage, it did discover a number of women with Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome (AIS). This is when a person who has XY sex chromosomes also has mostly female characteristics due to a lack of androgen receptors. Tests for testosterone levels in female athletes has not only introduced more barriers to entry for trans athletes, but for cis athletes as well. Now, women who “fail” the gender identity test due to high testosterone levels have to go through extra steps in order to get medically cleared to play their sport. The “Advantage” - - The most common concern regarding whether or not trans people should be allowed to participate is the “level playing field.” Many people believe that trans females have an innate advantage over cis females because they perceive them to still be “mostly” men - The reason the NCAA has the one year rule of hormone therapy is because trans females who went through puberty as a male before transitioning will have to essentially go through a second puberty as a woman as their phenotypic gender matches their identity (which takes about a year to normalize) 8 long distance trans runner case study; the real effects of gender hormone therapy If the interest of the men controlling the sport was really to ensure that every woman was completely equal in sport, then why are they not banning abnormally tall or strong cis women from competition? If cis women with high testosterone and XY sex chromosomes are still considered cisgender women, then why are trans females under the exact same circumstances being discriminated upon so disproportionately? Conclusion - All transgender people should be able to compete on the same team that their gender identity aligns with. - Excluding transgender people from athletics negatively affects everyone involved, the athletes themselves especially. Discussion Questions -Which past and current qualifying procedure stood out to you? (ex.chromosome test, hormone levels, sex tests) -Why do you think people are so scared of allowing trans and intersex atheltes to compete on their deisred team? -How did the stories and policies make you feel? -What feelings did the reasoning as to why trans and intersex women can’t participate in womans sports evoke? Discussion Cont. - What other social issues interplay with restricting masculine looking women from playing? -How should high schools move forward with allowing trans girls to play on girls teams? What other consequences can limiting the participation of sports biased on perceived gender representation cause? Is it possible for their to be a procedure in place that will make athletes feel welcome and not challenged while simultaneously not “threatening” woman assigned at birth athletes? References https://www.aclu.org/legal-document/hecox-v-little-safer-declaration https://www.mun.ca/biology/scarr/Barr_Bodies.html#:~:text=Barr%20body%20t esting%20was%20used,eastern%20Europe%20were%20particularly%20suspect. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7iHpnC7hmU
