An executive order banning transgender women from participating in women’s sports is anticipated to be signed by President Donald Trump on Wednesday. White House officials refer to the policy as the “No Men in Women’s Sports Executive Order.”
Wednesday is the 39th annual National Girls & Women in Sports Day, which was established in 1987 to honor female athletes and encourage girls to play sports. The timing doesn’t seem to be coincidental.
Before the November elections, the topic of transgender women playing women’s sports was a recurring and contentious one. Trump promised to keep men out of women’s sports and referred to trans women as men both during and after his campaign.
White House officials told reporters on a call Wednesday morning that they anticipate the word “transgender” will be used in headlines regarding the executive order, “but this has nothing to do with that.” According to them, the ruling will safeguard women’s access to fair and safe athletic possibilities in two ways.
The administration will first revoke the Biden administration’s guidelines on Title IX, a civil rights legislation that forbids sex-based discrimination in federally funded educational programs and activities, according to officials. According to that directive, schools were to give trans pupils access to sex-segregated facilities and school sports teams that corresponded with their gender identification. Instead, Trump’s directive will prevent pupils who were assigned male at birth from using women’s toilets and playing sports with girls. The administration will request investigations, and the Education Department will be entrusted with looking into such infractions,” the officials stated.
Second, officials stated that the government will ensure that the guidelines are implemented in non-educational contexts by collaborating with sports regulating bodies, such as the International Olympic Committee. They said that the guidance will have an impact on U.S. visa regulations.
“If you are coming into the country and you are claiming that you are a woman, but you are a male here to compete against women, we re going to be reviewing that for fraud,” a government official stated.
According to a May 2023 Gallup poll of American adults, nearly 70% of participants—up from 62% in 2021—said trans athletes should only be permitted to play on teams that match their biological sex. According to the LGBTQ think tank Movement Advancement Project, there are currently laws, rules, or policies in place in 27 states that prohibit transgender youth from engaging in sports that are congruent with their gender identity.
Riley Gaines, a former collegiate swimmer, and Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., both vocal opponents of transgender women in women’s areas, posted on social media that they would be attending the signing.
Men and women are biologically different, and no amount of campaigning, business pressure, or misinformation can change that, Mace wrote on X. This executive order protects the rights of female athletes who have dedicated their whole lives to competing at the greatest levels, restores equity, and preserves the original objective of Title IX.
Gaines commented, “Things could have been so different,” alongside a picture on X that seems to be an invitation to the signing. The last straw that convinced many moderates to support common sense was gender craziness. I think it was specifically the problem of guys in women’s sports. Since November 5th, I have been living in a state of thankfulness every day. Thank God.
The Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest LGBTQ advocacy group, released a statement warning of the repercussions of a complete ban on trans women and girls playing female sports prior to the order being signed and made public.
According to HRC President Kelley Robinson, this directive may subject youth to harassment and discrimination, encouraging individuals to doubt the gender of children who don’t conform to a rigid ideal of how they should look or dress. Playing sports teaches you the virtues of perseverance, teamwork, and dedication. And creating a sense of belonging is what sports are all about for a lot of students. Instead of partisan policies that make life more difficult for children, we should want that for all of them.
Since assuming office, Trump has already issued three executive orders that specifically target transgender individuals. He signed an order on the day of the inauguration stating that the government will only recognize male and female as the two sexes and that these sexes cannot be changed. Additionally, he signed directives banning access to gender-affirming care for transgender individuals under the age of 19 nationwide and prohibiting open military service.
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