GLAD Law Statement on House Passage of Transgender Sports Ban

Today the U.S. House narrowly voted 218-206-1, along near-party lines, for a federal bill that would ban all transgender girls and women from participation in school sports.

Jennifer Levi, Senior Director of Transgender and Queer Rights at GLAD Law, a leading civil rights organization dedicated to justice and equality for LGBTQ+ people and people with HIV, issued the following statement:

"It's disgraceful to see the new Congress make one of its first priorities a sweeping bill that would deny transgender kids of any age the opportunity to play school sports and strip from them the many educational benefits sports provide. Thoughtful policies can successfully balance fairness and inclusion in sports at multiple levels of competition, as local school districts and sports associations have done for many years. We appreciate those in Congress who voted against this extreme bill and hope the Senate will recognize that blanket bans imposed by politicians don't serve athletes, students, or sport."