Press Release • March 23, 2021
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 23, 2021
James Michael Nichols | Equality NC | james@equalitync.org | (919) 213-0562
The bill is part of a wave of legislation targeting the transgender youth across the country.
RALEIGH – Yesterday, March 22, the North Carolina House of Representatives filed House Bill 358, an anti-transgender piece of legislation titled "Save Women's Sports Act." This bill seeks to ban trans youth from participating in sports teams and athletics within public and charter schools, as well as nonpublic schools if they are part of a state-level association including NCHSAA.
HB 358 is rooted in invasive and inappropriate questions about the sex assigned to young people at birth and outdated generalizations about male and female bodies. Trans youth belong on sports teams in alignment with their gender identity. When youth participate in school sports teams and athletics they gain physiological, social, and emotional benefits that are crucial to the development and well-being of all young people, regardless of gender.
HB 358 is part of a larger wave of anti-transgender legislation targeting young people, including over 80 bills filed across America.
Rebby Kern, Education Policy Director at Equality NC, said today:
"Five years after attacking transgender North Carolinians through the devastating impact of House Bill 2, NC House Republicans are once again targeting our transgender community. It's beyond disheartening to see that the North Carolina General Assembly has not learned the lessons of five years ago. Young people all across this state, regardless of gender identity, deserve the opportunity to experience the benefits of being part of a sporting community -- especially when trans youth already face disproportionate barriers to success in learning environments. Equality NC believes that we can find a way to protect transgender youth AND ensure that all youth, regardless of gender identity, have the opportunity to learn teamwork, sportsmanship, leadership, self-discipline, and all the other lessons that sports provide. We call on the NCGA to do their part in protecting all youth by passing clear nondiscrimination protections for youth in sport and beyond."
James Michael Nichols, Communications Director at Equality NC, said today:
"Now that gay, lesbian, and bisexual people have achieved a baseline level of cultural acceptance in America, anti-LGBTQ politicians have moved on to a more vulnerable target: our transgender brothers, sisters, and siblings. Trans people have always been at the forefront of the fight for LGBTQ rights and acceptance and borne the brunt of violence, discrimination, and targeted attacks against our community. Now, politicians want to limit the ability of young trans folks to experience camaraderie and teamwork at a crucial developmental stage of life. It's up to all LGBTQ people to show up for trans youth right now when they need us most."
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Equality North Carolina builds LGBTQ+ power through advocacy, education, and uplifting the stories of queer and trans North Carolinians in pursuit of racial and social justice. www.equalitync.org
