How Many Transgender Athletes Play Women's Sports?
bill outlawing transgender athletes from competing in girls' and women's sports passed the U.S. House along party lines on Thursday.The bill, titled Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act and authored by Florida Republican Greg Steube, is not expected to pass the Democrat-controlled Senate, and President Joe Biden has threatened to veto the bill if it lands on his desk.
Despite its unlikely path to success, the bill solidifies that the LGBTQ+ population remains at the center of a culture war waged by the GOP.As dozens of states nationwide target LGBTQ+ people at the state level—including those competing in athletics—the U.S.
House recently passed a bill that, if it became law, would prohibit transgender athletes from competing on girls' and women's sports teams at federally funded educational institutions.The Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act proposes an amendment to Title IX, which prohibits gender-based discrimination in education and related programs.
The amendment would recognize an athlete's gender as being "based solely on a person's reproductive biology and genetics at birth."It is the first of its kind considered in the House as it failed to proceed in the last three Congresses.The bill, if passed, would target athletes competing at public K-12 schools as well as public universities relying on federal funding.However, the energy spent by Republicans in passing the bill likely only impacts a very limited portion of the U.S.
