During the last day of Pride Month, the transgender community faced another setback as the Supreme Court decided to uphold state laws that ban transgender girls and women from playing on the teams they identify with.
This case also focuses on female transgender athletes and revealed that the court does not believe banning transgender athletes contradicts Title 9 or the Equal Protection Clause.
This comes over a year after President Donald Trump signed an executive order to ban transgender girls and women from their teams. Shortly afterward, the PIAA updated its rules to direct schools to work with their lawyers on compliance.
However, Kristina Moon, the Education Law Center’s senior attorney, explained that this decision only impacts Idaho and West Virginia, where those bans were challenged — not Pennsylvania.
Curtis Jones Jr., the Pennsylvania Human Rights Commission’s interim chair, said there is no state-level ban and the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act provides protections against discrimination based on sex, gender, gender identity, expression and more.
He encouraged state residents to file a complaint with the commission if they feel they’ve faced discrimination in housing, education, employment or public accommodation.
Moon said Pennsylvania still does not have a law banning transgender athletes and the decision does not stop school districts from applying affirming policies if they choose.
“The main takeaway for school leaders really is to not overread this decision,” she told the York Daily Record on Tuesday. “It does not apply here, where we do not have a Pennsylvania state law prohibiting students from participating based on their gender identity.”
Rather, she said, schools should continue to offer inclusive opportunities for the students, and it is good policy to do so.
“Over time, this discrimination will be a thing of the past,” the Pennsylvania Youth Congress posted on social media, weighing in on the decision, reminding residents, as Moon did, that there is no law in the state to ban transgender athletes. “Though that does not make today any easier.”
York County school districts have already adopted a similar policy that restricts students to the teams that align with their sex assigned at birth, starting with Red Lion Area. That school board adopted a restrictive sports policy in 2023, along with policies that restricted what pronouns and bathrooms they could use.
All three of those policies were drafted by the Independence Law Center, a conservative Christian law firm based in Harrisburg.
In addition to drafting the sports policy for Red Lion, the firm also drafted similar versions for Dover Area, Northern York County, Southern York County and South Western.
Eastern York also adopted a ban, but it was not written by the ILC. Rather, it was drafted by its in-house solicitor, Stock & Leader, even though the board did openly discuss the ILC and its policy.
West Shore also passed a transgender sports ban about a year ago. This version was also drafted by the district’s then-solicitor, Tucker and Arensberg. It also pulled a section of the Northern York County policy, which was written by ILC, in place of what the district’s solicitor wrote.
Additionally, members of seven York County school boards signed a brief the ILC filed on the two cases the Supreme Court heard.
While there are no laws on the Pennsylvania books right now, there are lawmakers pushing for it.
Senator Kristin Phillips-Hill posted on social media this morning that the SCOTUS decision was a “huge win for female athletes” and pushed for the House to pass a bill that has already passed in the Senate.
Moon said this decision, while it may not stop Pennsylvania athletes from playing, is still harming the small transgender population and even smaller transgender athlete population.
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“It’s incredibly harmful for students who are just trying to be themselves in school and focus on algebra and make friends,” she said. Moon added that this hurts their identity, self-worth and their opportunity to participate as who they are in school activities.
These efforts also send a signal to the students that they can be denied opportunities in sports, which can teach leadership and teamwork, and that they aren’t as important as the next student.
It also doesn’t just impact the transgender athletes.
The athletes who were assigned female at birth will also be impacted, Moon said, explaining that when authorities start to police gender, it invites harmful, sexist scrutiny for adults to question if the female athletes are feminine or presenting as girls enough.
“It’s really gross when you think about adults policing girls’ bodies in that way,” Moon said.
She added it’s dehumanizing and embarrassing to be questioned, as well as having an impact on the athletes’ social, emotional and mental well-being.
Eastern Pennsylvania Trans Equity Project posted on social media that the transgender community is valid.
“Transgender people – and especially in this case – transgender youth are valid,” the organization wrote.
The group continued, explaining that they are loved and that there are still organizations fighting for them every day.
“Transgender people have always been here and always will be,” the organization wrote. “We have survived and thrived by finding chosen family who loves us and cares for us.”
The following resources are available for those need them:
- Suicide and Crisis Lifeline: Dial 988
- Dauphin County Crisis: 717-232-7511
- The Trevor Project 24/7 line: 1-866-648-7386
- The Rainbow Rose Center in York does not currently have set drop-in hours but has many services available at https://www.rainbowrosecenter.org/
- LGBT Center of Central PA in Harrisburg. More information at https://centralpalgbtcenter.org/
- GLO Harrisburg can be reached via https://www.gloharrisburg.org/
- You can find more information about the state Human Relations Commission and file complaints at https://www.pa.gov/agencies/phrc
