White House press secretary Karin Jean-Pierre said at a news conference Tuesday that the topic of transgender athletes in school sports is “complicated.”
The issue has sparked some of the most heated debate and been most violently attacked in recent years amid a renewed push for LGBTQ+ rights on the American right. Spurred by stories of transgender athletes’ dramatic success in sports, conservatives and other critics have called for a ban on transgender people competing in games other than their assigned sex at birth, in the name of fairness to cisgender competitors. The focus of the discussion has fallen disproportionately on trans women, whom opponents argue has an unfair physical advantage.
At the same time, proponents counter that there are relatively few examples of trans athletes succeeding at such a high level and that it doesn’t outweigh the need to respect trans identity, an issue that some say distracts people from trans Groups focus on more serious injustices. Some also argue that the so-called physical advantages that opponents claim transgender athletes have are not universal.
Under attack from Republicans at all levels of government, President Joe Biden’s administration joins a majority of Democrats in staunch support for transgender rights. Its response to the issue of transgender athletes, however, has been trickier.
Win McNamee/Getty
Asked during a news conference Tuesday about the Biden administration’s stance on transgender athletes in school sports, Jean-Pierre said the press secretary said the issue was “complicated.”
“It’s a complex issue. It’s really a complex issue with a wide range of perspectives, really broad perspectives,” Jean-Pierre said. “There’s no ‘yes or no’ answer to this question, it’s complicated. The Ministry of Education has a rule: [DOE] It has been suggested that we will move this process forward, and again we want to make sure that as we build guardrails with this rule, we also prevent discrimination against transgender children. But again, this is a complex issue with a wide range of perspectives, and we respect that. “
Weekly newspaper The White House press office was reached by email Tuesday for further comment.
This spring, amid a wave of Republican-led state laws passing laws on transgender students and sports, the Biden administration moved to amend Title IX to prevent schools from “categorically” banning transgender students from teams that match their gender, But there is also some leeway.
“The proposed rule also recognizes that under certain circumstances, particularly in the highly competitive high school and collegiate athletic environment, some schools may adopt policies that limit the participation of transgender students,” read a statement from the DOE .
The change has drawn little bipartisan support, with Biden’s allies on the left taking it especially hard.
“There is absolutely no reason for the Biden administration to do this,” wrote Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York. “It’s untenable and embarrassing. Admins can still walk this thing back , they should. It’s a disgrace.”
“Honestly, Biden’s move on the rules for transgender children in sports is not only a retrograde betrayal, [forces] Alejandra Caraballo, a civil rights attorney and LGBTQ+ advocate, wrote. This is legitimizing transphobia. “
