The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear two cases challenging state laws that prohibit transgender student-athletes from competing in women-designated sports teams in public schools and universities. One of these cases, Little V. HecoxBoise state student Lindsay Hecox will be involved. He sued after being denied a school girls’ track and cross-country team spot under Idaho’s trans sports ban.
A federal judge blocked Idaho law in 2020, finding it likely violated the equal protection clause of the US Constitution and discriminated against Hecox and other transgender athletes based on gender and transgender status. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the ruling last year in an opinion revised in 2023. The state then appealed to the Supreme Court and asked them to decide whether the ban was constitutional.
The court also covered it West Virginia v. BPJhigh school student Becky Pepper Jackson is involved. He is taking adolescent blockers to prevent male adolescence, causing development of physical traits that may give her more benefits than cisgender female athletes. She tried to compete in the school’s cross-country and track team.
Pepper Jackson argued that the law unfairly treated her because she was transgender, in violation of her constitutional right to equal protection.
The federal judge initially blocked the law from becoming effective, but later ruled against Pepper Jackson, claiming that a ban was necessary to prevent cisgender female athletes from being placed at a competitive disadvantage. The Fourth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned its decision and found that the law violated Pepper Jackson’s rights under Title IX, a 1972 federal law that prohibits discrimination based on gender in federal funded education programs. The state appealed the decision to the Supreme Court.
The Idaho and West Virginia cases will be heard in the Supreme Court during their next term, beginning October 6th.
“Like other educational programs, school athletic programs should be accessible to everyone, regardless of gender or transgender status,” said Joshua Bullock, senior advisor to the LGBTQ & HIV Project for the American Civil Liberties Union, in a statement.
“Trans kids play sports for the same reasons as their peers – to learn patience, dedication, teamwork and simply to have fun with friends.
Tara Borelli, senior adviser at Lambda Legal, said in a statement that athletes like Pepper Jackson just want to play sports with friends and peers.
“Everyone understands the value of participating in Team Athletics because of fitness, leadership, socialization and countless other benefits,” Borelli said. “The US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit last April issued a thoughtful and thorough ruling that allowed BPJ to continue attending track events. That appropriate decision should stand the test of time, and we are ready to defend it.”
The court refused to hear similar incidents in Arizona after 13-year-old cross-country, soccer and basketball player Jane Doe and adolescent blocker and 17-year-old volleyball player Megan Law challenged the state’s transgender sports ban. They also argued that they do not have male adolescents and therefore do not retain “unfair advantages” over cisgender female athletes.
Currently, 27 states have laws that restrict trans athletes from competing on designated teams for girls.
Last month, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a Tennessee ban on transition-related health care for transgender youth. In its ruling, the court found that the prohibition did not discriminate based on gender or transgender status.
It then directs the Court of Appeals to reconsider rulings regarding the exclusion of transgender insurance in Medicaid and government-sponsored health plans, indicating that transgender people may continue to develop their rights to change gender markers on their birth certificates – the courts may continue to develop transgender rights in the future.
Source: Metro Weekly – www.metroweekly.com
