U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) and veteran sports broadcaster Sage Steele co-wrote an op-ed in Fox News about the importance of protecting female athletes by keeping men out of women’s sports.
In the op-ed, Sen. Tuberville and Steele highlight the Title IX roundtable they held earlier this month with athletes, parents, and coaches. They also discuss the amendment Sen. Tuberville introduced to preserve Title IX and protect female athletes, which all 51 Democrats voted to block from proceeding.
Excerpts can be found below and the entire op-ed can be found here.
“Fifty-two years ago, Congress passed Title IX, a law ensuring equal access for men and women to thelessons, life skills and opportunities that come from sports. It’s been one of the most successful pieces of legislation to ever come out of Congress. As a former coach and veteran sports broadcaster, we are horrified to watch President Joe Biden and Democrats take a sledgehammer to Title IX.
“We have both seen the positive effects of Title IX firsthand. One of us saw it during one of our first jobs out of college coaching junior girls’ basketball. Title IX was just being implemented, and the difference it made on women’s athletics was felt immediately.
“The hardworking young women on the team went on to earn college scholarships, start careers, and become leaders in their communities. Looking back, one wonders if they would have had the same opportunities without Title IX. Would they have had the same success if they had to compete against biological males?
“The other one of us had a front row seat at ESPN for the explosion of women’s sports over the past several decades. Back then, there were very few female broadcasters covering sports. The network launched espnW, an initiative to highlight female athletes.
“Thanks to Title IX, sports like women’s collegiate basketball, gymnastics, softball, swimming and golf began to flourish. That’s why it was so disappointing when ESPN chose to highlight Lia Thomas, a biological male, during Women’s History Month. The very same ESPN executives who had launched and funded espnW – and the broadcasters who supposedly cared about ‘women’s rights’ – went silent. […]
“One thing is clear: we need Congress to take action. The ‘Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act’ does the opposite of what Biden’s rules would do: it says that if you let biological boys compete against girls, then you lose your federal funding. It preserves the 52-year intent of Title IX and would save women’s sports. The House of Representatives has already passed its version of the ‘Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act.’ What will it take for the Senate to do the same?
“This isn’t a Democrat or Republican problem – it’s an American one. We will do whatever it takes for Joe Biden and his Democratic colleagues to come to their senses. We will not stop speaking up for women and girls. Allowing men to compete in women’s sports isn’t just dangerous – it’s unfair, it’s unsafe, and it’s wrong.”
Senator Tommy Tuberville represents Alabama in the United States Senate and is a member of the Senate Armed Services, Agriculture, Veterans’ Affairs, and HELP Committees.
