Sports

2022 - 3 - 29

Oklahoma becomes fourth state to enact anti-trans sports ban this ... (CNN)

Oklahoma Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt on Wednesday signed legislation banning transgender women and girls from competing on sports teams consistent with ...

For this reason, critics have said the language of "biological sex," as used in this legislation, is overly simplistic and misleading. And in 2020, a federal judge blocked Idaho's enforcement of its sports ban. The legislation requires parents of students 18 and under to sign an affidavit "acknowledging the biological sex of the student at birth." Republican state Sen. Micheal Bergstrom, one of bill's sponsors, said in a statement. While sex is a category that refers broadly to physiology, a person's gender is an innate sense of identity. Students 18 and older need to sign the affidavit themselves.

Oklahoma, Arizona ban transgender students from girls' sports (Reuters)

The Republican governors of Oklahoma and Arizona on Wednesday signed bills banning transgender athletes from girls' school sports, joining a growing list of ...

The advocacy group Human Rights Campaign has said that according to surveys, only about 12% of them play on girls' sports teams. Transgender rights have been pushed to the forefront of the culture wars playing out across the United States in recent years, together with issues such as reproductive rights. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com

Oklahoma governor signs transgender sports ban (NBC News)

Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt signed a bill into law on Wednesday banning transgender girls and women from playing on female sports teams.

“We’re making that stand today in the state of Oklahoma.” “When it comes to sports and athletics: Girls should compete against girls. “The reality is, men are biologically different than women.” “We are protecting women’s sports. The Oklahoma measure is “one of many bills we have seen attacking” the state’s trans and nonbinary communities, “while overlooking the real issues with gender equality in sports when it comes to funding, resources, pay equity, and more,” Tamya Cox-Touré, executive director of the ACLU of Oklahoma, said in a statement Wednesday. “Promoting baseless fears about trans athletes does nothing to address those real problems.” Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb, a Republican, vetoed his state’s version of the legislation this month, saying that it “falls short” of providing a consistent statewide policy for what he called “fairness in K-12 sports.” However, Indiana legislators have enough votes to override his veto and enact the bill, though they have not yet moved to do so.

Oklahoma Becomes 13th State To Limit Sports Access For ... (Forbes)

Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt (R) on Wednesday signed the “Save Women's Sports Act,” banning transgender girls and women from playing on female sports teams.

The laws have sparked backlash from civil rights groups, including the Human Rights Campaign, which said in a statement Oklahoma’s bill will exclude “all transgender girls from participating in school athletics, increasing their isolation and denying them the social, physical and emotional benefits of sports. The Oklahoma law follows a flurry of measures targeting transgender students’ ability to participate in sports introduced by Republican-led legislatures across the country. A dozen other states have already enacted bans, according to NBC, including Alabama, Florida and Mississippi. Utah became the most recent state to do so last week, when state lawmakers overrode Republican Gov. Spencer Cox’s veto of a bill banning transgender students’ participation in girls’ sports.

Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt signs transgender athlete ban into law (Oklahoman.com)

Gov. Kevin Stitt held a ceremony on Wednesday to sign Senate Bill 2 into law, which bans transgender women from competing on women's sports teams in college ...

“I knew I must stand up for something for something I know to be true — sex is a fact,” Daniels said. A student-athlete will only be allowed to play on the sports team associated with the gender assigned at their birth, even if they currently identify as another sex and have undergone hormone therapy, which is required by the state’s high school athletic association. Stitt said he was unaware of any current transgender athletes in the state and said he had not spoken with any transgender person while considering the bill. “Five decades of Title IX is going to be very quickly undone if we allow just a few biological males to come in and start taking the medals, taking the ribbons, setting the fastest time, and taking the scholarships.” The Oklahoma Secondary Schools Activities Association, the governing organization for high school sports, has said it has not received a complaint or had a school seek to enforce its rules on transgender athletes. “Being in college athletics, it’s a pretty talked about topic, just with the swimmer that’s come out,” said Gladd, referring to Lia Thomas, the University of Pennsylvania athlete who recently became the first transgender woman to win an NCAA swimming competition.

Oklahoma Governor Signs Bill Preventing Transgender Girls From ... (CalBearsMaven)

Kevin Stitt signed the 'Save Women's Sports Act,' which took effect immediately for transgender girls competing in high school and college sports.

“They’re not going to keep trans kids from playing sports, having fun or living their lives,” Kleber said. It applies to female sports teams in both high school and college. “When it comes to sports and athletics, girls should compete against girls.