Florida bans transgender athletes from girls’ sports

Jun 02, 2021

Alex Peebles Reporter

By Alex Peebles (Reporter), Ben Burke (Producer)

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida’s Republican governor signed a bill Tuesday barring transgender females from playing on public school teams intended for student athletes born as girls, plunging the state into the national culture war over transgender rights.

“In Florida, girls are going to play girls sports and boys are going to play boys sports,” Gov. Ron DeSantis said as he signed the bill into law at a private Christian academy in Jacksonville that would not be subject to the law. “We’re going to make sure that that’s the reality.”

The new law, sure to be challenged as unconstitutional, inflames an already contentious discussion unfolding nationally as Republican-controlled states move to limit the rights of LGBTQ people, whose advocates were particularly annoyed that the legislation was signed on the first day of Gay Pride Month.

The NCAA, which oversees college athletics, has said it has “a long-standing policy that provides a more inclusive path for transgender participation in college sports.” The NCAA currently requires transgender women to get treatment to lower their testosterone levels before they can compete in women’s sports.

For more on Gov. DeSantis, check out Shannon Longworth’s story here.

Tags: Society at Large

Gwen Baumgardner: NEW TO STRAIGHT ARROW NEWS.

FLORIDA IS THE LATEST STATE TO BAN TRANSGENDER GIRLS AND WOMEN FROM PLAYING IN WOMEN’S ATHLETICS AT SCHOOLS.

GOVERNOR RON DESANTIS SIGNED THE BILL INTO LAW…CALLED THE ‘FAIRNESS IN WOMEN’S SPORTS ACT’.

MANY DEMOCRATS AND CIVIL RIGHTS ADVOCATES CALL THE BAN UNNECESSARY AND DISCRIMINATORY…

WHILE SUPPORTERS SAY TRANSGENDER FEMALE ATHLETES HAVE AN UNFAIR ADVANTAGE.

Gov. Ron DeSantis: “The bill that we’re doing today will ensure fairness for women athletes for years to come in the state of Florida. It says that athletic teams or sports that are designated for females are open to females and we’re going to go based on biology not based off ideology when we’re doing sports.”

Gwen Baumgardner: ALABAMA, ARKANSAS, MISSISSIPPI, MONTANA, TENNESSEE AND WEST VIRGINIA PASSED SIMILAR LAWS.

OUTSIDE HIS ROLE AS FLORIDA’S GOVERNOR — RON DESANTIS COULD PLAY A HUGE FACTOR IN THE REPUBLICAN PARTY IN THE COMING YEARS.
SHANNON LONGWORTH EXPLAINS WHY — IN ‘JUST ONE NAME’. YOU CAN CLICK THE LINK BELOW TO SEE THE STORY.

FOR MORE NEWS AND IN-DEPTH PIECES — KEEP IT RIGHT HERE ON STRAIGHT ARROW NEWS DOT COM.