Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
It’s as simple as X and Y.
The question of whether boys should be participating in girls sports in our state may finally be addressed by the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association next spring.
Among proposed amendments to the organization’s athletic code are proposed rule amendments that relating to so-called “transgender” competitors. The proposals will be introduced to the 53-member assembly during its annual meeting Jan. 27.
One amendment would limit participation in girls sport to “students assigned female at birth.” A second amendment would require schools to offer separate sports for only “transgender” students.
As a wrestling coach, the issue of banning boys from competing against girls is a no-brainer.
By the time students reach sixth-grade, the physical differences between boys and girls become obvious. Musculature, body fat, bone mass, strength and other factors separate boys and girls.
And by the time students reach high school, the differences are so stark that allowing boys in girls sports is a recipe for injury.
In short, boys and girls are different. And the difference is significant enough that there isn’t a level playing field for girls when boys are introduced into their sports.
Multiple school districts in Eastern Washington have already noted that boys are boys and girls are girls. In the wake of a Methow Valley boy wining girls running events and an East Valley boy winning a girls state title over a West Valley girl last spring, Eastmont, Moses Lake, Kennewick, Central Valley and other school boards passed resolutions calling on WIAA to end the unfair practice of allowing gender-confused boys in girls sports.
Despite the apparent intent of the rule amendment, the verbiage of the amendment may not be strong enough to accomplish its intent.
Around most of the modern world and throughout history, babies are born a boy or a girl — they are not “assigned” a gender.
WIAA should not start with the false premise of being “assigned” a gender. An inaccurate premise like that will only lead to loopholes, lawsuits and likely injured athletes.
And what about forcing member schools to add “transgender” sports? Here in Eastern Washington, there are not enough gender-confused students in an individual school to field a baseball team. So, why should our rural schools be forced to accept such an edict — and the huge costs that will come with it.
Oh, WIAA may have a solution for the cost issue already in the making. The proposed amendments include an increase in membership fees by 25% for both the 2025-26 and 2026-27 school years.
Our school districts are already struggling for pay for state and federal mandates. They’re struggling to cover ever-increasing costs for supplies, fuel, salaries and more. Should they really have to offer transgender sports?
The issue is really as simple as X and Y.
If a child has two X chromosomes, they compete in girls sports. If they have a Y chromosome, they should be in boys sports. There’s no need to push transgender ideology into our schools any further than it’s already been pushed.
The decision, at least as it pertains to WIAA member school districts offering middle and high school sports, will rest with the organization’s representative assembly, which is expected to vote on the amendments between April 9 and 18.
For the amendments to be included in the next school year activities handbook, 60% of the WIAA representatives will have to approve of the proposals. That means each of these amendments, as well as several others, will need 21 votes to pass for high school rules and 11 are needed for middle school.
If you want to be sure your girls have an opportunity to compete fairly in sports, tell your school district you support the proposal to limit boys participation to only boys sports. And while you’re at it, let your district know you’d like to help keep it financially solvent by opposing the forced creation of transgender teams and leagues.
The decision is easy as X and Y.
— Roger Harnack is the owner/publisher of Free Press Publishing. Email him at rharnack@gmail.com.
Roger Harnack is the owner/publisher of Free Press Publishing. Having grown up Benton City, Roger is an award-winning journalist, photographer, editor and publisher. He's one of only two editorial/commentary writers from Washington state to ever receive the international Golden Quill. Roger is dedicated to the preservation of local media, and the voice it retains for Eastern Washington.
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