The US House of Representatives passed a contentious bill on Tuesday that would prevent federal funding for K-12 schools allowing transgender students to participate in women’s sports. The legislation, titled the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act, passed with a vote of 218-206, mostly along party lines. However, it faces a tough battle in the Senate, where it would need support from at least seven Democrats to overcome a filibuster.
House Speaker Mike Johnson celebrated the bill’s passage, calling it “a great day for America.” He stressed that the bill, introduced by Representative Greg Steube, ensures that men cannot compete in women’s sports, emphasizing that “men are men, women are women, and men cannot become women.” Republicans argue that the bill is necessary to protect women’s sports and ensure fairness for female athletes, with Steube claiming that the majority of Americans support the exclusion of men from women’s sports.
However, Democrats criticized the bill as an invasion of privacy and a harmful attack on transgender youth. Representative Jim McGovern called it a “creepy obsession” with children’s privacy, while others warned that the bill could exacerbate bullying and mental health issues for transgender youth. Representative Lori Trahan, a former college athlete, questioned the involvement of politicians in determining how sports should be regulated.
The bill’s timing, in the second week of the new Congress, suggests Republicans believe it remains a politically advantageous issue heading into the 2024 election cycle. Some Democrats voiced concerns that the bill could lead to invasive questions about girls’ bodies, with Representative Katherine M. Clark arguing it undermines girls’ rights in sports.
While two Democrats—Henry Cuellar and Vicente Gonzalez—voted in favor of the bill, there were disagreements about enforcement, particularly regarding birth certificates, with Democrats arguing that this method is unreliable.
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