North Carolina lawmakers are rapidly advancing numerous bills that would restrict the lives of transgender North Carolinians, including one proposal that would prohibit people assigned male at birth from playing on women's sports teams from middle school to college. The Senate is set to pass a similar bill Thursday, and both chambers have the votes to override Gov. Roy Cooper's expected veto.
The bills have elicited outrage from both parties, as well as major medical organizations. Trans kids have reported that state legislatures' efforts to restrict their rights have been detrimental to their mental health as suicide rates in the trans community are rising.
The momentum behind numerous LGBTQ rights-related bills comes seven years after North Carolina passed now-repealed legislation that prohibited trans people from using bathrooms aligned with their gender identity. House Republicans are set to pass a bill that would amend a landmark federal civil rights law to bar transgender athletes from participating in girls' and women's sports.
The two-page bill would change Title IX's definition of sex to one based solely on a person's genetics at birth. Fourteen states under Republican leadership have adopted laws targeting the transgender community, including in Iowa where transgender female athletes are now barred from participating.
Data shows very few student-athletes are transgender, and a 2017 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey found that nearly 2 percent of high school students identify as transgender. The House proposal would not bar transgender women and girls entirely from participating In women’s sports but would allow them to train or practice with a women's athletic program.
Democratic leaders continue whipping against the bill, with up to four moderate Democrats possibly voting with Republicans. The House is expected to vote Thursday on a GOP-led bill banning transgender athletes from competing in federally funded schools’ women’s and girls’ sports programs; however, it will likely face opposition within the Democratic-controlled Senate along with White House veto threats.
Democrats argue that policies restricting transgender athletes’ participation in team sports add to the discrimination trans people face, particularly trans youth. The White House and the Biden administration have both promised vetoes, while the ACLU tracks over 450 anti-LGBTQ bills in the US.
House Republicans recently approved a bill barring transgender women and girls from participating in athletic programs designated for women. This effort is part of a nationwide push by conservatives to restrict transgender rights as they make culture issues central to their political message.
Democratic opponents label this bill “hateful” and “insidious,” arguing it fuels a hate campaign against transgender children. Despite support from prominent athletes like Megan Rapinoe and Sue Bird, who signed a letter opposing the Republican-led sports bill earlier this month, President Biden still maintains that discrimination has no place on our nation's school or playing fields.