With two school-aged daughters in sports, much of my time not spent in the Capitol or on the farm is spent in gymnasiums all over the state. At those sporting events, I am so often approached by parents concerned with protecting girls’ sports as we’ve seen more biological males participating in girls’ sports because of their gender identity.
Under this bill, only athletes assigned as female on their birth certificate are allowed to participate in school-sponsored girls’ athletics. Girls deserve equal opportunity in athletics and to compete on a level playing field. The purpose of this legislation is to protect girls’ opportunity to participate in sports and gain all of the important life skills that come with that experience.
Under this bill, every athlete has an equal opportunity to play sports. It does not tell any child that they can’t participate in sports. It simply says they must participate in the sport under the gender on their birth certificate.
Recently a young woman by the name of Ainsley Erzen penned an open letter to the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union on this issue. Ainsley is a national champion track runner for Carlisle High School. Honestly, Ainsley explains the importance of this issue much better than I ever could, and I’d encourage everyone to read her piece by clicking HERE.
This bill has now passed subcommittee and is set to be debated by the full Education Committee next week. In the meantime, I’d love your feedback on this bill. What are your thoughts? Respond and let me know.
You can email Speaker Grassley at [email protected].
