CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Virginia’s ban on transgender athletes from competing in girls’ school sports is constitutional and can be upheld, a federal judge ruled Thursday.
“I realize that being transgender is natural and not an option,” wrote US District Court Judge Joseph Goodwin in his decision. “But a person’s gender is also natural, and it determines the physical characteristics that are relevant to athletics.”
The American Civil Liberties Union and its West Virginia branch filed a lawsuit in 2021 on behalf of an 11-year-old transgender girl hoping to compete in junior high school cross country in Harrison County. The lawsuit names state and county boards of education and their directors as defendants.
West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey welcomed Thursday’s decision.
“This isn’t just about simple biology, it’s about fairness for women’s sports, plain and simple,” the attorney general said. “The opportunity for girls and women on the field is precious and we must protect that future.”
The ACLU of West Virginia said it is reviewing the decision with its co-advisor to determine next steps. The ban applies to middle and high schools, as well as colleges.
Plaintiffs’ lawsuit does not challenge whether schools are allowed to have separate boys and girls sports teams, and Goodwin was tasked with determining whether the Legislature’s definition of the term ” schoolgirls” and “women” are constitutionally permitted. The Save Women’s Sports Bill signed by Republican Governor Jim Justice says they mean anyone assigned a female gender at birth.
“The Legislature’s definition of ‘girl’ based on ‘biological sex’ has significant implications for the government’s vital interest in providing equal sporting opportunities for women,” Goodwin said. determined.
The judge also dismissed the plaintiff’s claim that the state law violated Title IX, the landmark gender equality law enacted in 1972.
Goodwin issued a preliminary order in July 2021 temporarily blocking the state’s ban.
In Thursday’s decision, he said the plaintiff, “like all transgender people, deserves respect and the ability to live free of judgment and hate just because she is.” But he did not find enough evidence that lawmakers passed the law with intent to cause harm.
Goodwin noted that at the time this measure was passed, there were no widespread reports of transgender girls participating in sports. It is clear, he said, that “the best regulation is a solution to a potential, yet unrecognized ‘problem’.”
If the legislature fails to do so, there would be no reason for the court to weigh in on the matter, he continued. “However,” concluded the judge, “I must do so now.”
The athletic ability of transgender athletes is the subject of an ongoing national debate. More than a dozen states have passed laws banning or restricting their participation on the premise that they have an unfair competitive advantage, although not many are common.
The West Virginia High School Activity Committee, which oversees academic sports, said in 2021, when the lawsuit was filed, that it had not received any complaints about the athletes. transgender in the women’s team.
A 2017 study by the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law used population-based surveys at the state level to estimate that West Virginia has the highest percentage of residents ages 13 to 17 (1.04%). ) of all states that identify as transgender. That equates to about 1,150 teenagers.
