Lessons learned through sports should be open to all, including transgender student-athletes

You learn a lot as a student-athlete.

You learn to embrace discomfort and push yourself to limits you never thought you could reach. You learn rules and the integrity necessary to follow them. Winning teaches you to celebrate success. Losing teaches you grace and grit. You learn what it means to be an opponent — respecting your competitors while still striving to win. You learn that some days you are the best, and other days, your best is not enough.

You learn that assisting can be just as important as leading. You learn what it means to be part of a team. You learn how it feels to belong.

And none of these essential lessons — not one — is tied to gender.

This is why the Idaho State Legislature should recognize the dangerous and damaging proposal of House Bill 500. The bill would prohibit transgender student-athletes from participating in school sports, and even worse, would subject all female student-athletes to invasive pelvic exams.

The Idaho Statesman editorial board was fortunate to meet with transgender athlete Chris Mosier last week. He was the first transgender athlete to quality for the Olympic Trials in the gender in which he identified. During his visit, he shared stories about his transition, his value for sport and his opposition to the dangerous legislation Idaho currently has under consideration.

His story of struggles and the sense of belonging that school sports provided him inspired my position on this. These are universal struggles not limited to being trans — they’re connected to being a kid and wanting to find a place where you fit.

Bill sponsor, Rep. Barbara Ehardt, believes she is doing a good thing for Idaho’s female student-athletes. She hopes this legislation will promote a safe, equitable environment for our young women to thrive. But in reality, the bill would legalize targeted discrimination. It would subject young women of all gender identities to potential trauma and would likely discourage participation in youth sports altogether. The underlying effect of this bill will also be there to prevent young people — both girls and boys — from coming out as trans.

I was a fiercely competitive student-athlete who is straight and identifies with the gender I was born with — female. I was the exact student Rep. Ehardt says she is trying to protect. But even with that background, I oppose House Bill 500.

I was one of the tallest, biggest and most awkward kids in school. Being on a team helped me find a way to connect with my peers. I played golf from grade school, through high school and in college. Being on the team gave me a sense of confidence that was critical while navigating the rough waters of becoming an adult. I wouldn’t wish to strip away that experience from any young person.

This bill is a “solution” looking for a problem that does not exist. Currently, Idaho doesn’t even have transgender athletes seeking to be on a team. But worse, this bill is an example of legislators advocating against a group of people they don’t (and didn’t try to) understand. If these legislators sat down with young people — either transgender or cisgender — they would likely learn that there is not an existing sense of apprehension among either group, and Idaho’s welcoming spirit lives in both.

The state already has rigorous policy in place regulating how trans athletes participate in school sports. It requires one year of documented transition practice through hormone treatments before students can play on the team they identify with. At the same time, another bill, House Bill 509, would have criminalized the physicians who help trans students achieve that. Fortunately, that bill died in committee.

HB500 supporters have expressed concern that males transitioning to become female student-athletes are at a physical advantage over their peers. Or that it would allow boys to play on girls teams for a competitive edge.

To counter this, Mosier pointed out that the Olympics released a policy in 2004 welcoming transgender Olympians to compete at the most elite level of athletics the world has. Even with that policy in place for more than 15 years, there have been no trans athlete Olympic medalists — even with the perceived physical advantages.

Mosier also rightly pointed out that the decision to transition is not made lightly — certainly not for the purpose of advancing careers as a student-athlete. These stereotypes, which are shared as worst-case-scenario fear tactics, don’t exist in reality.

Let’s also not underestimate athletes. By creating legislation specifically for women’s sports, women are identified as weaker or lesser. An argument that has not always played well — just consider historic powerhouse athletes Billie Jean King, Annika Sorenstam, or even Idaho’s own Kristin Armstrong.

This legislation discounts the hard work that goes into being an athlete. The physical discipline, the mental acumen, and the hours of practice that make game day look much simpler than it really is.

Idaho school sports programs should be a place where young athletes feel safe and have the chance to thrive. That means every student-athlete — regardless of gender, identity, size, shape, weight, color or orientation — should have the opportunity to participate and belong. No student should have to weigh their willingness to suffer through an invasive exam for the chance to play, learn, grow and be a kid.

This story was originally published March 8, 2020 at 12:00 AM.