In West Virginia, one of the 18 states that have enacted such laws, a federal judge recently upheld a state measure that prohibits biological male student athletes who identify and present themselves as female from playing on girl's school sports teams.
Rachel Csutoros of Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), a law firm representing females in Title IX cases, says it is important to respect biological genders because girls and women are the ones who are harmed when laws and policy ignore biological realties.
"In athletics, this may be a physical harm if it's a contact sport, but it also includes losing medals, podium spots, public recognition, opportunities to compete," she lists. "That's why Title IX was created in the first place -- to provide girls and women with equal opportunities. By allowing biological males to compete in women's sports, it really strips them of their ability to be champions in their own sports."
While those advocating for biological males to compete in female sports claim it is an issue of fairness, ADF points out that their stance is actually unfair to female athletes.
"Males will always have a physical advantage over females, and that's the reason why we have girls' sports in the first place," Csutoros reiterates. "Whether or not one individual male may be worse at sports than one individual female, on average, males will always have greater physical advantage over females."
As an example of the "many instances of males running faster, swimming faster than females," she notes that in 2017, 275 boys ran faster in the 400-meter lifetime best than the lifetime best of world champion sprinter Allyson Felix.
"Allyson Felix is a gold medalist in running, and 275 boys ran faster than her," the attorney summarizes. "Males will always have that physical advantage over females" on the same playing field.
And as Csutoros points out, no amount of testosterone replacement, testosterone suppression, or puberty blockers will ever change that.
