Recent Developments
This week, Texas has initiated a lawsuit against the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), aiming to prevent transgender athletes from participating in women’s sports.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton contends that allowing transgender athletes to compete misrepresents and misleads fans about the nature of women’s sports.
Importance of the Case
Filed in Lubbock’s state district court, the lawsuit claims that NCAA policies permitting transgender athletes in women’s competitions violate the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act. This law is designed to safeguard consumers from misleading advertising and practices, which the lawsuit asserts applies to the promotion of women’s sports that may include transgender participants.
This lawsuit represents the latest attempt by conservative lawmakers to limit the participation of transgender athletes and to persuade the NCAA to enforce a ban. Support for such measures has also been expressed by former President Donald Trump, who has indicated a desire to prevent transgender athletes from competing.
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The lawsuit seeks a court order to prevent the NCAA from allowing transgender participants in women’s sports in Texas or at events involving Texas programs. Alternatively, it urges the court to mandate that events featuring transgender athletes are not labeled as “women’s” sports.
Context and Consequences
Paxton referenced the ongoing debate surrounding the San Jose State women’s volleyball team, which faced forfeitures from several opponents due to the presence of a transgender player. Just last month, a federal court declined to bar the team from the Mountain West Conference championship, while the Associated Press chose to withhold the player’s identity at her request.
The NCAA does not maintain specific data on transgender athletes among its 544,000 competitors spanning 19,000 teams nationwide. Earlier this month, NCAA President Charlie Baker testified before Congress, indicating he knew of fewer than 10 active transgender athletes within the association.
Since 2010, the NCAA has mandated that transgender athletes assigned male at birth must undergo at least one year of testosterone suppression before being eligible to compete on women’s teams. Meanwhile, transgender individuals assigned female at birth transitioning to male are allowed to compete on men’s teams, although those undergoing testosterone treatments are barred from women’s competitions.
Athletes are required to meet their sport’s specific testosterone level criteria, with compliance monitored throughout the season.
In 2022, the NCAA updated its policy to align with national sport governing bodies, stipulating that if a governing body lacks a transgender athlete policy, existing regulations from the sport’s international federation apply. In the absence of such international guidelines, Olympic criteria take precedence.
Public Reactions
“When fans watch a women’s volleyball game, they expect to see biological women competing against one another, not an inclusion of biological males,” Paxton stated. “Radical gender theory has no place in college athletics.”
Paxton accused the NCAA of deliberately compromising the safety and well-being of female athletes by effectively turning women’s sports into “co-ed competitions.”
The NCAA responded on Monday with a statement emphasizing its commitment to advancing women’s sports and ensuring fair competition while refraining from commenting on ongoing litigation.
Brooke Slusser, co-captain of the San Jose State volleyball team and one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit against the Mountain West Conference, expressed her endorsement of the Texas lawsuit on social media, urging, “Hey NCAA, this fight will only intensify until you enact change!”
Looking Forward
The NCAA’s specific response to the Texas lawsuit remains uncertain.
