As Texas Legislature considers anti-trans bills, NCAA announces it will not hold events in states [View all]
As Texas Legislature considers anti-trans bills, NCAA announces it will not hold events in states that discriminate against trans students
by Kate McGee, Texas Tribune
The National Collegiate Athletic Association Board of Governors said it will only hold college championships in states where transgender student-athletes can participate without discrimination. The Monday warning sets the stage for a political fight with multiple states, including Texas, that are considering bills in their legislatures that would require students to play sports with only teammates who align with their biological sex.
Inclusion and fairness can coexist for all student-athletes, including transgender athletes, at all levels of sport, the NCAA statement said. Our clear expectation as the Associations top governing body is that all student-athletes will be treated with dignity and respect. We are committed to ensuring that NCAA championships are open for all who earn the right to compete in them.
Texas lawmakers have filed six bills that target transgender students sports participation but only two of those bills would affect colleges and university sports in addition to K-12. While most of the proposals have not yet received a hearing, one bill, which was named a Senate priority, recently advanced out of a Senate State Affairs Committee to the full chamber for a vote. It would require the University Interscholastic League, which runs K-12 sports, to amend its rules to only let students play sports with students who match their biological sex as determined at birth or on their birth certificate. If passed, it would go in effect Sept. 1.
Reps. Cole Hefner, R-Mount Pleasant, and Valoree Swanson, R-Spring, who authored the two bills affecting college and university student athletes, were not immediately available for comment. Their bills have not yet been scheduled for hearings.
Read more:
https://www.texastribune.org/2021/04/12/ncaa-transgender-laws-texas-legislature/