A new order signed by President Joe Biden attempts to create a safer environment for people regardless of their gender or sexual orientation. Yet it seems that this new order comes at the expense of women’s opportunities on the courts and fields of women’s sports.
On January 20, Biden signed Executive Order 13988, which is titled as “Preventing and Combating Discrimination on the Basis of Gender Identity or Sexual Orientation.” This was one of the first orders passed by him as he entered his new presidential role and this seems to be a large step for the LGBTQ community in America. As monumental as this decision was there seems to be a line in the order that has caught the eye of many people, myself included.
In Section I of the official order, it is written, “Children should be able to learn without worrying about whether they will be denied access to the restroom, the locker room, or school sports.” While this may have been a passing remark to build up to the main intention of the new order, this comment has been picked up by many people who believe this to be unfair to female athletes. Females in sports have gained more and more attention, and with the possibility of a transgender woman to decide to join a female sports team, these women could be robbed from their own opportunities. To me, and many others, this is concerning.
There is some apprehension to be had about transgender athletes switching teams as humans have biological differences at birth, one of which is testosterone. Testosterone creates larger skeletal muscles in a man’s body and more red blood cells; this causes an aerobic advantage as the red blood cells’ function is to absorb oxygen taken in. Aside from testosterone, men have larger amounts of Type II muscle fibers. These fibers are what create strength and speed in the human body. Looking at what is given at birth, there would be definite disadvantages for women athletes when compared to transgender female athletes.
There have already been instances where transgender women have risen above other athletes in women’s sports settings. One such example is mixed martial artist Fallon Fox, who underwent surgery to become a woman in 2006. Fox was granted permission to compete in women’s MMA, however, in a fight against Tamikka Brents, Fox defeated Brents after a referee stoppage. Brents was quickly taken down, only lasting two minutes before Fox cracked her skull, giving Brent a concussion and fracturing her orbital bone.
Another transgender athlete who has been accused of using unfair biological advantages has been Hannah Mouncey. Mouncey played men’s handball in Australia for several years, even playing for the World Men’s Handball Championship in 2013. Mouncey then began transitioning and officially began identifying as a woman in 2016. Mouncey continues to play handball and dominates the women’s scene, with rumors circulating that several of Mouncey’s female teammates complained about their transgender woman teammate. It got to the point that this was allegedly the reason Mouncey was denied eligibility to compete in the World Women’s Handball Championship in 2019.
Though if we want to disregard the scientific and biological advantages that transgender men hold over cisgender women, I would argue that this would be an injustice for these women from a societal standpoint. Like I stated earlier, the field of sports has been dominated by men for so long. This has become the cultural standard; men are the athletic ones and they are who we should be watching in their competitions for our enjoyment. This is unfair to the many amazing females who work just as hard as the men do to succeed in the same areas.
As of the writing of this article, Renee Montgomery has retired from the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) after an illustrious career. Montgomery has been playing in the WNBA for 11 years and racked up awards such as playing in the WNBA All-Star Game in 2011 and winning two WNBA Championships in 2015 and 2017. Montgomery has had an incredible career, yet she is not a household name. That is because when asked about great basketball players, more often than not fans will mention Lebron James, Kawhi Leonard or Anthony Davis, but a female player will not enter their mind. Women can be just as athletic and impressive yet we overlook them because, “sports is just a man thing.”
This is a stigma that, in 2021, I would hope to be broken by now. Women’s sports don’t get enough recognition and now instead of honoring these women who worked for their spot, it could be taken away by someone who has transitioned to a woman; the genetic advantages discussed earlier could push these women back to the bench for someone potentially bigger, stronger or faster. It is a disservice to those cisgender women who have seen their spots stolen from them.
I see the new president’s efforts to make a way for anyone and everyone to be involved without their gender identity being questioned, but that is what harkens back to what this article has been titled. Could it be possible that an attempt at diversity has ruined an already diverse and different field? I can certainly see this being a byproduct of his actions.
Biden has attempted to make large strides for the transgender citizens of America, and this Executive Order seems to have done so. However, while it may not have been his intention, Biden has potentially turned his back on cisgender female athletes in the process.
Photo Credit / Associated Press
