Bill to Ban Trans Athletes

Bill to Ban Trans Athletes Passes

By Lucy Robinson, Student Life Editor

An Indiana bill to prohibit transgender girls from playing on female school sports teams in elementary through high school has passed in the House and Senate and is awaiting the signature of Gov. Eric Holcomb, as of March 7.

Bill author Rep. Michelle Davis said the reasoning behind House Bill 1041 is that, “female athletes deserve fair competition and an even playing field. This bill ensures just that, a fair and equal opportunity to compete for Hoosiers now and in the future.”

Therehas been pushback on the bill from many LGBTQ+ activists and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), saying that this bill seeks to discriminate against transgender youth. The ACLU also has concerns about the effect of this bill on the mental health of transgender youth.

In regard to these mental health concerns Rep. Davis said, “Of course, mental health, I empathize with anyone who goes through mental health issues. I see it’s real for all students and all Hoosiers today, but this bill is about maintaining fair competition for female sports.”

Nixe Negrin, junior, is a transgender student at ZCHS. Negrin, who was inter-

viewed before the bill’s passage, said the law affects transgender students by sending “a message that the state doesn’t care about us.”

“I am not an athlete, but I know what it’s like to fight the system and it’s not easy,” Negrin said. “If this gets passed, then it would be sure to damage any trans girl from participating in any sport; though, it is already affecting any trans kid in school because of the discussion even taking place. The suicide rate within trans youth is already alarmingly high, and this just further contributes to those statistics. You’d think that Indiana would be fixing these issues in today’s time, not causing them.”

Because of strict existing requirements by the Indiana High School Athletic Association (IHSAA), the application to compete as a transgender athlete has only been filled out a few times in its over 10 years of existence.

In an interview with the IndyStar, IHSAA commissioner Paul Niedig said, “To my knowledge, I’ve had two applications submitted. One was a biological female to male [transition] and that student was going to run cross-country at an Indiana [high] school and that information was submitted according to the policy and that student was granted the ability to run on the male cross-country team.”

The other was a male to female application where the application process was stopped.

ZCHS Athletic Director Greg Schellhase said, “no one through our offices has ever applied for the waiver.”

“I bet if you asked a lot of the athletic directors in the area, they wouldn’t even know about this waiver process,” Schellhase added.

When asked by State Rep. Ed DeLaney if Indiana has a large number of transgender girls playing on girls sports teams, Rep. Davis

said, “We don’t as of yet, but wouldn’t it be a tragedy if your granddaughter didn’t get to play?”

Not only have the effects and intention of the bill been questioned, the necessity of it has as well. The IHSAA already has a set of standards regarding transgender athletes.

“The current IHSAA rules should provide enough for making competition fair,” Negrin said. “The representative is blinded by the genetic ‘advantage’ that trans girls have. The truth is that anyone, no matter sex, condition, race, etc., has to work to be good at a sport.”

Currently, a waiver must be filled out for a transgender student to participate on the team which aligns with their identity. According to the IHSAA, the initial application requires the student’s school registration information, written statements from the student and their parents/guardians about the student’s gender identity and reason for submitting an application, statements of the actions, attitudes, dress manner, gender identification and gender expression of the student from parents, friends, etc., and written affirmation from a health-care professional.

The application also requires that students must have, “completed a minimum of one year of hormone treatment related to gender transition or undergone a medically confirmed

gender reassignment procedure.”

For male to female transgender students, the student’s physical condition (bone structure, muscle mass, and/or testosterone hormonal levels) and “how they relate to the physical condition of a genetic female of the same age group,” are analyzed, according to the IHSAA.

Obtaining hormones can often be difficult for teenagers due to expense or parent consent.

“The current rules give a year for the hormones to make changes in the body,” Negrin said. “So muscle mass wouldn’t be a big problem after that year, thus giving more reason to discredit the argument that the bill is making.”

Bills similar to House Bill 1041 have been proposed in many states. In many, the bills were vetoed by the governors and opposed by the ACLU. So far, legislation has been passed limiting the rights of transgender citizens in Texas, Florida, Illinois and Iowa.

If you or someone you know are struggling with suicidal thoughts, you can call the U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-TALK (8255). You are not alone.