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{"id":66604,"date":"2021-03-17T18:00:03","date_gmt":"2021-03-17T22:00:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/?p=66604"},"modified":"2021-03-17T16:35:49","modified_gmt":"2021-03-17T20:35:49","slug":"bill-banning-transgender-athletes-from-womens-sports-clears-first-hurdle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/2021\/03\/17\/bill-banning-transgender-athletes-from-womens-sports-clears-first-hurdle\/","title":{"rendered":"Bill Banning Transgender Athletes from Women\u2019s Sports Clears First Hurdle"},"content":{"rendered":"

A bill seeking to ban transgender athletes from competing in women\u2019s only leagues associated with educational institutions was given initial approval by a House committee Wednesday.<\/p>\n

Advocates for the transgender community came out in force to oppose what they consider a discriminatory piece of legislation.<\/p>\n

<\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Florida is one of 25 states considering legislation that would ban transgender athletes from competing in women\u2019s only leagues.<\/p>\n<p>Bill sponsor Rep. Kaylee Tuck said it’s about fairness.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNearly 50 years after Title IX all gains women have made athletically could be wiped away. The Fairness in Women’s Sports Act is intended to make sure that doesn’t happen,\u201d said Tuck.<\/p>\n\n\t\t<style type=\"text\/css\">\n\t\t\t#gallery-1 {\n\t\t\t\tmargin: auto;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t#gallery-1 .gallery-item {\n\t\t\t\tfloat: left;\n\t\t\t\tmargin-top: 10px;\n\t\t\t\ttext-align: center;\n\t\t\t\twidth: 33%;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t#gallery-1 img {\n\t\t\t\tborder: 2px solid #cfcfcf;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t#gallery-1 .gallery-caption {\n\t\t\t\tmargin-left: 0;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t\/* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes\/media.php *\/\n\t\t<\/style>\n\t\t<div id='gallery-1' class='gallery galleryid-66604 gallery-columns-3 gallery-size-thumbnail'><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/2021\/03\/17\/bill-banning-transgender-athletes-from-womens-sports-clears-first-hurdle\/athlete-debate00000003\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"200\" height=\"113\" src=\"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000003-200x113.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000003-200x113.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000003-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000003.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt><\/dl><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/2021\/03\/17\/bill-banning-transgender-athletes-from-womens-sports-clears-first-hurdle\/athlete-debate00000007\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"200\" height=\"113\" src=\"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000007-200x113.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000007-200x113.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000007-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000007.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt><\/dl><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/2021\/03\/17\/bill-banning-transgender-athletes-from-womens-sports-clears-first-hurdle\/athlete-debate\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"200\" height=\"113\" src=\"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate-200x113.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate-200x113.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt><\/dl><br style=\"clear: both\" \/>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n<p>But in the bill’s first hearing, parents of trans-children said the legislation feels like discrimination.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDo not deny her the rights that I had as a kid growing up,\u201d said Jesse Jones, who has a transgender daughter.<\/p>\n<p>Others went further.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI have watched their pain and I have watched their suffering and this will bring more of that,\u201d said Nathan Bruemmer, who is himself transgender and the former Executive Director of ALSO Youth in Sarasota.<\/p>\n\n\t\t<style type=\"text\/css\">\n\t\t\t#gallery-2 {\n\t\t\t\tmargin: auto;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t#gallery-2 .gallery-item {\n\t\t\t\tfloat: left;\n\t\t\t\tmargin-top: 10px;\n\t\t\t\ttext-align: center;\n\t\t\t\twidth: 33%;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t#gallery-2 img {\n\t\t\t\tborder: 2px solid #cfcfcf;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t#gallery-2 .gallery-caption {\n\t\t\t\tmargin-left: 0;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t\/* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes\/media.php *\/\n\t\t<\/style>\n\t\t<div id='gallery-2' class='gallery galleryid-66604 gallery-columns-3 gallery-size-thumbnail'><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/2021\/03\/17\/bill-banning-transgender-athletes-from-womens-sports-clears-first-hurdle\/athlete-debate00000009\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"200\" height=\"113\" src=\"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000009-200x113.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000009-200x113.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000009-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000009.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt><\/dl><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/2021\/03\/17\/bill-banning-transgender-athletes-from-womens-sports-clears-first-hurdle\/athlete-debate00000002\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"200\" height=\"113\" src=\"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000002-200x113.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000002-200x113.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000002-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000002.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt><\/dl><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/2021\/03\/17\/bill-banning-transgender-athletes-from-womens-sports-clears-first-hurdle\/athlete-debate00000008\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"200\" height=\"113\" src=\"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000008-200x113.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000008-200x113.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000008-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000008.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt><\/dl><br style=\"clear: both\" \/>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n<p>The bill would allow trans athletes to compete in co-ed leagues or against men, but advocates said it\u2019s not enough.<\/p>\n<p>Gina Duncan with Equality Florida said the legislation is unconstitutional, pointing to a similar law blocked by a federal court in Idaho.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey’re not really about sports. These bills are about marginalizing and demonizing transgender Americans,\u201d said Duncan.<\/p>\n<p>But Tuck said that case still has a long way to go and she believes protections for women in Title IX will ultimately uphold the law.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe’re just asking that the biological differences are recognized between men and women and the sports teams reflect that,\u201d said Tuck.<\/p>\n\n\t\t<style type=\"text\/css\">\n\t\t\t#gallery-3 {\n\t\t\t\tmargin: auto;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t#gallery-3 .gallery-item {\n\t\t\t\tfloat: left;\n\t\t\t\tmargin-top: 10px;\n\t\t\t\ttext-align: center;\n\t\t\t\twidth: 33%;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t#gallery-3 img {\n\t\t\t\tborder: 2px solid #cfcfcf;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t#gallery-3 .gallery-caption {\n\t\t\t\tmargin-left: 0;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t\/* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes\/media.php *\/\n\t\t<\/style>\n\t\t<div id='gallery-3' class='gallery galleryid-66604 gallery-columns-3 gallery-size-thumbnail'><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/2021\/03\/17\/bill-banning-transgender-athletes-from-womens-sports-clears-first-hurdle\/athlete-debate00000004\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"200\" height=\"113\" src=\"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000004-200x113.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000004-200x113.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000004-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000004.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt><\/dl><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/2021\/03\/17\/bill-banning-transgender-athletes-from-womens-sports-clears-first-hurdle\/athlete-debate00000006\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"200\" height=\"113\" src=\"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000006-200x113.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000006-200x113.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000006-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000006.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt><\/dl><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/2021\/03\/17\/bill-banning-transgender-athletes-from-womens-sports-clears-first-hurdle\/athlete-debate00000001\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"200\" height=\"113\" src=\"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000001-200x113.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000001-200x113.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000001-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/athlete-debate00000001.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt><\/dl><br style=\"clear: both\" \/>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n<p>Tuck told us she\u2019s willing to consider amending the bill, perhaps adopting language from a senate bill that does allow trans athletes to compete in women\u2019s sports under certain circumstances.<\/p>\n<p>The Senate legislation, which has not been scheduled for a hearing, would allow transgender athletes to compete in women\u2019s leagues if they have maintained a specified level of testosterone for a year.<\/p>\n<p>Transgender advocates argue even that proposal, would place an undo burden on the transgender community.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A bill seeking to ban transgender athletes from competing in women\u2019s only leagues associated with educational institutions was given initial approval by a House committee Wednesday. Advocates for the transgender community came out in force to oppose what they consider a discriminatory piece of legislation. Florida is one of 25 states considering legislation that would […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":132,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66604"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/132"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=66604"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66604\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":66618,"href":"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66604\/revisions\/66618"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=66604"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=66604"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.flanews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=66604"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}