Florida Becomes 8th State to Enact Anti-Trans Sports Ban This Year

Throughout public secondary schools and colleges in Florida and seven other states, the anti-transgender sports ban has been enacted, prohibiting transgender students from playing on girls’ and women’s sports teams. Ron DeSantis, Florida’s Republican governor, signed the measure into law on Tuesday. The anti-trans bills regarding sports for women and girls started on the first day of Pride Month (a month to celebrate LGBTQ+ members.)

The implemented laws stipulate that public high schools and college teams must draft players based on biological sex (which is defined further as the gender assigned to one on a birth certificate). This results in trans women and girls being excluded from sports. It does state, though, that if transgender women and girls feel deprived of athletic opportunities or suffer any direct or indirect harm resulting from a ban, they have the right to sue the school and take legal action against it.

The seven other Republican-led states that have implemented the anti-trans ban include South Dakota, Mississippi, Arkansas, Tennessee, West Virginia, Montana, and Alabama. On being asked if the governor was sending a message on the day of Pride, DeSantis replied, It’s to say we’re going to protect fairness in women’s sports.

Democrats (and LGBTQ advocacy groups) are finding it challenging to enact a new law opposing baseball’s anti-trans ban. They claim the ban is an excellent threat to LGBTQ children. Several human rights organizations and the Human Rights Campaign have taken legal action and raised concerns about the harm the ban has on society in general and sports. Nonetheless, he acknowledged the protesters were not going to dictate policy in the state. Several political campaigns, activists, and Democrats have utilized the NCAA’s decision not to let it host the Final Four in cities with anti-LGBTQ measures to justify their opposition to Florida’s laws.

Photo by YES Market Media / Shutterstock.com