NO ON HF2309 - Banning Trans Girls and Women from Playing Girls’ Sports

Written by Jessica Engelking

An Open Letter in Opposition to HF2309,

Recently, the Iowa House passed a bill to ban trans girls and women from playing girls’ sports in Iowa’s schools, colleges, and universities. Great Plains Action Society stands in solidarity and support of our trans relatives, and opposes this attempt to discriminate against them. We strongly urge you to contact your Senator and tell them to oppose HF2309. You can use Find Your Legislator to figure out who your Senator is.

We strive to advocate for the truth and the truth is, if this bill passes, it means our trans relatives will have their discrimination written into law and our trans youth will be deprived of the many benefits of participating in sports. The main argument being advanced in favor of this bill doesn’t reflect the truth. Those in favor of the bill argue that girls who were assigned male at birth have an unfair athletic advantage over girls who were assigned female at birth. This isn’t the case. The truth is that science does not support the claim trans girls have an unfair advantage. The myths about trans athletes that fuel the support of this discriminatory legislation do not correspond to the truth. The truth is, anti-trans legislation isn’t about fairness, it’s about trans-phobia–just like, the current push to ban books isn’t about the books, it's about power. It’s about having the power to discriminate against others. It’s about maintaining that power. By allowing all girls to play sports together, regardless of their assigned status at birth, we challenge the very existence of the heteropatriarchy. As we evolve as a society, we are learning that dividing people according to their assigned gender at birth isn’t the optimal way to organize ourselves. This challenges the status quo and undermines the existing power structures.

Please, for the sake of our trans relatives, let your Senator know that you do not support discrimination against trans athletes. The fear-mongering fueling this anti-trans legislation does not reflect the reality of what is actually happening. The claims being made are factually incorrect. The truth is, passing this bill will absolutely harm our trans youth. Please help us in doing what we can to stop this from happening by contacting your Senator and asking them to oppose this harmful discrimination against our trans youth.