North Carolina lawmakers are debating a proposed bill that would block transgender women and girls from joining women's high school and college athletic teams.
The North Carolina House Judiciary Committee heard public comments on Wednesday for the Save Women's Sports Act. The measure would require intramural and interscholastic teams to be designated as male or for men, female or for women, or co-ed.
Teams and sports considered female, or women's activities, wouldn't be open to men. And sex would be defined as based “solely on a person's reproductive biology and genetics at birth.”
Supporters of the measure say it levels the playing field for female students, because those born as male could have physiological advantages.
But others say it's discriminatory against transgender students.
Asher McKinney-Ring is a high school student from western North Carolina who identifies as male and is an athlete.
“Words can't explain how painful and exhausting it is to wake up every morning knowing that my rights to normal childhood experiences like school sports are being debated by elected officials that I have never met, and that my existence and identity are not protected by law," says McKinney-Ring.
Several other states, including South Carolina, are also considering similar measures.
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