Editorial Cartoon • 04-15-22

Labor and Greens MPs in the Queensland Parliament voted on Thursday to defeat a motion from Robbie Katter’s Australian Party against transgender women participating in female sport. The motion was defeated 49 votes to 33, with Liberal MPs and the sole One Nation Party MP voting in favour of the motion. Trigger Warning: This story discusses transphobic comments, which might be distressing to some readers. For 24 hour crisis support and suicide prevention call Lifeline on 13 11 14. For Australia-wide LGBTQI peer support call QLife on 1800 184 527 or webchat.Katter’s motion asked the house to support women’s rights by agreeing that “allowing biological men to play in female sport will erode the integrity of female sport”.The motion further said that “biological males participating in female sport pose an unfair competitive advantage against, and/or safety risk against female athletes” and anyone supporting it was “complicit in eroding the integrity of female sport and therefore women’s rights”In his address to the Parliament, Katter claimed that it was “important for parents – I’m a parent of some young girls who will be hopefully participating in some sport one day – to imagine them 15 or 17 years old, post-puberty, competing against the odd person who might want to transfer to being female, that doesn’t sit well with me.