Story at a glance
- An Idaho law passed earlier this year requires women to provide “biological” proof of their gender if questioned.
- A federal judge has issued a temporary stay on the legislation in response to a challenge from LGBTQ+ advocates.
- In the decision, the judge said, “the Plaintiffs are likely to succeed in establishing the Act is unconstitutional as currently written.”
A federal district court judge Monday temporarily blocked an Idaho state law that prohibits transgender female athletes from playing on women’s teams — giving hope to LGBTQ+ advocates that challenged the legislation in court.
“The Court recognizes that this decision is likely to be controversial,” said Judge David C. Nye, in the decision. “In making this determination, it is not just the constitutional rights of transgender girls and women athletes at issue but, as explained [in the decision], the constitutional rights of every girl and woman athlete in Idaho. Because the Court finds Plaintiffs are likely to succeed in establishing the Act is unconstitutional as currently written, it must issue a preliminary injunction at this time pending trial on the merits.”
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Under the current legislation, a student whose sex is disputed would have to produce a signed physician’s statement indicating their sex based on internal and external reproductive anatomy, levels of testosterone and an analysis of their genetic makeup.
“I feel a major sense of relief,” Lindsay Hecox, a track athlete and freshman at Boise State University who is transgender, told POLITICO. “I’m a girl, and the right team for me is the girls’ team. It’s time courts recognize that, and I am so glad that the court’s ruling does.”
Another plaintiff, a 17-year-old cisgender athlete, joined the complaint concerned that she may have to “prove” her gender due to stereotypically masculine features. In the decision, Nye agreed that “being subject to a sex dispute is itself humiliating” and said the state had not provided enough reason to justify the legislation — which doesn’t address men’s teams.
“Girls deserve to compete on a level playing field. Allowing males to compete in girls’ sports diminishes women’s athletic opportunities and destroys fair competition,” said ADF Legal Counsel Christiana Holcomb, who represents two female collegiate athletes at Idaho State University, in a statement, adding, “Both of our clients agree: Putting male athletes up against females is simply not fair because it changes the nature and dynamics of sport for young women.”
The legislation was one of two bills signed by Idaho Gov. Brad Little (R) on March 31, which is the International Transgender Day of Visibility, that limited the rights of transgender individuals and have since been challenged by LGBTQ+ advocates. The other, which prevented transgender people from altering the gender on their birth certificates, was ruled unconstitutional by a federal judge earlier this week. In June, the Supreme Court ruled that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which outlaws discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin, extends to sexuality and gender identification.
“Young people are the heart of our movements for justice, and the young plaintiffs in these three cases have sparked a powerful wave of victories for transgender students. It’s heartening to see the courts affirm these plaintiffs’ rights and those of so many other LGBTQ+ young people,” GLSEN Executive Director Eliza Byard said in a statement. “There is no place for discrimination against LGBTQ+ students in our education system. After a pivotal Supreme Court ruling on LGBTQ+ rights in June, judges across the nation are correctly upholding LGBTQ+ students’ rights to equality and inclusion in their schools and blocking the efforts of anti-LGBTQ+ hate groups attempting to pass policies that exclude LGBTQ+ students.”
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