There’s an easy and simple answer to that question: yes, of course.
But they aren’t going to do it when their career, their livelihood and their reputation is at stake. And because it’s currently hip and trendy to say you’re cool letting transgenders (men) play women’s sports, you aren’t going to go against the tide.
So instead of protecting women’s sports, coaches are publicly siding with the transgender insanity and acting like it’s somehow “fair” or “safe” (it’s neither) to allow boys and men to play sports against girls and women.
Yes, the politically correct coaches don’t want to get “cancelled” by the media, lose their jobs or their income – so they aren’t going to speak the truth, no matter how idiotic they sound.
South Carolina women’s basketball coach doesn’t seem to mind if her team is comprised of all men.
One of those persons is South Carolina coach Dawn Staley who says transgender athletes “should be able to play.” She said these words ahead of her team’s NCAA Women’s Basketball National Championship game (and win) against Iowa.
When asked her stance [1] on transgender athletes, she said, “I’m on the opinion of, if you’re a woman, you should play. If you consider yourself a woman and you want to play sports or vice versa, you should be able to play. That’s my opinion…”
When pressed on if transgender women (men) should be able to participate in women’s sports, she said, “Yes, yes.”
So now Staley is not just a champion coach and the winner of the latest women’s basketball crown, she’s the champion of inclusivity – at the expense of her future teams who could potentially be comprised of mostly men – because if you identify as a woman, heck, you should be able to play women’s sports.
Stop the separate male and female teams – just put everyone together!
In fact, I’m not even sure why we have to even have separate sports anymore. According to the smart people, everyone should be able to do what they want – so why not have co-ed teams and let the women and men play together?!!
Oops… does that mean we’ll only have about five women playing NCAA basketball? Too bad. If they can’t make the team, that’s THEIR PROBLEM.
Who needs equality. Equity is where it’s at.
Republicans trying to bring sanity back into sports.
Of course, this isn’t a new debate. The issue of transgender athletes competing in sports has been simmering for years, boiling over into the political arena in 2023 when the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act [2] which makes it a violation of Title IX for “federally funded education programs or activities to operate, sponsor, or facilitate athletic programs or activities that allow individuals of the male sex to participate in programs or activities that are designated for women or girls.”
Under the bill, sex is based on an individual’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth. Crazy, right?! But don’t hold your breath for any sweeping changes; the bill is gathering dust in the Senate, and the White House has already threatened to veto it.
NCAA has caved into transgender hysteria but the NAIA hasn’t.
As for the NCAA, they’ve been tiptoeing around this issue since 2010, updating their policy in 2022 to align with the “Olympic Movement.” Translation: They’re trying to keep everyone happy while avoiding a PR nightmare.
Meanwhile, the NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) isn’t having any of the transgender nonsense. The Associated Press [3] reports that they announced a policy this week that all but bans transgender athletes from competing in women’s sports at its 241 mostly small colleges across the country.
In a unanimous 20-0 vote, their Council of Presidents approved a new policy that says all athletes may participate in NAIA-sponsored male sports but only athletes whose biological sex assigned at birth is female and have not begun hormone therapy will be allowed to participate in women’s sports.
I think it’s a little weird that girls can participate in boy’s sports – but hey, maybe it’s because there are sports that aren’t available to women.
Will the debate ever end?
This debate is not likely to die down – at least not until after the elections are over. And maybe not even then. It’s probably going to have to go to the Supreme Court or the future of women’s sports will remain uncertain.
The headline in Newsweek [4] says, “Supreme Court Could Kill College Transgender Sports” referring to a possible “Title 9” case that might reach the judges (which outlaws discrimination based on sex at any school or educational facility receiving federal funding.)
For the safety and fairness of women everywhere, let’s hope that the court DOES kill “college transgender sports” – because that’s not really a “thing” or they’d have their own teams.