Staff Reports
America’s governors are taking a stand against Joe Biden’s latest assault on women’s rights. In a move that has raised concerns across the country, the Department of Education has announced new Title IX rules that would require educational institutions to allow students to compete on sports teams based on their gender identity rather than their biological sex.
Half the Country's Governors Unite to Defend Women's Sports Against Biden's Title IX Rewrite
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Half of America’s governors have banded together to fight back against this blatant overreach of federal authority. In a letter to Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, the governors expressed their grave concerns about the impact of the proposed regulation on states’ ability to enforce their own laws and policies as written.
The proposed regulation, the governors argue, is based on a highly politicized gender ideology and lacks any congressional authority. They call on the Biden administration to withdraw the proposed regulation and restore the protection of fairness in women’s and girls’ sports.
The governors rightly note that Title IX was enacted to protect and encourage women’s athletics and that the proposed regulation would turn its purpose on its head. They also point out that the regulation lacks foundation in established law and includes terms not found in Title IX.
The governors argue that compelling a subjective, athlete-by-athlete analysis based on a student’s self-identified gender identity will only create confusion and chaos in schools. This will undoubtedly result in protracted and disruptive litigation.
Moreover, defending the hard-fought athletic achievements of female athletes is more than a matter of safety. It also protects essential fairness. The governors note that the regulation would validate an average male athlete stealing the recognition from a truly remarkable female athlete whose lifelong athletic discipline and achievements would be discarded based on a deliberate misreading of a law whose very purpose was to protect, preserve, and encourage women’s athletics.
The Biden administration’s relentless pursuit of draconian enforcement of its gender ideology is reminiscent of the scandal of 1970s and 1980s East German women athletes. The governors rightly warn that the logical result of the administration’s policies will be to erase the achievements of generations of courageous women.
The letter to the Department of Education was led by Governor Tate Reeves (R-MS) and signed by 23 other governors. The governors’ stand against this federal overreach is a clear message to the Biden administration that states will not allow Washington to dictate their policies and trample on their rights.
