Men are not women, nor can they become women. It follows then that Title IX, a federal law enacted to protect equal opportunities for women, permits states to enact laws that preserve and protect women’s sports by ensuring that only women participate. It also follows then that, when states enact these laws, they do not violate the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment.
On June 30, the U.S. Supreme Court acknowledged that there are inherent physical differences between men and women, and it unanimously recognized that state protection of women’s sports is consistent with Title IX. That their decision in West Virginia v. B.P.J. and Little v. Hecox was necessary is lamentable, but each time the truth triumphs is a cause for celebration.
There are more fundamental implications from this decision that transcend sports. In locker rooms, restrooms, homeless shelters, prisons, and anywhere else biological differences are relevant, biological reality must be respected. What happens on the field of play is symptomatic of a far more dangerous disease: the rejection of truth. Truth is a pre-requisite for justice. How can a society offer equal protection under the law to men and women if that society cannot define “man” and “woman”?
Thankfully, the female athletes involved in these cases were willing to stand for truth. My colleagues at Alliance Defending Freedom were honored to stand beside them. And now the Supreme Court has joined us.
Justice Clarence Thomas, with trademark clarity, concluded his concurring opinion this way:
“Legislatures have many obvious rational bases to keep men who believe that they are women out of teams and private spaces reserved for women… As the Court recognizes, this case concerns ‘biological men’ and ‘boys who identify as girls.’ Men and boys with gender dysphoria are not women or girls, even if they believe that they are. Sex is an immutable ‘biological’ characteristic; it is binary; and ‘man’ and ‘woman,’ ‘boy’ and ‘girl,’ are the terms that correspond to adults and children of each sex. To use language to obscure reality—to show ‘indifference regarding the truth’—is to lie to the public and cease to treat our fellow citizens ‘as equal[s]’” [citations omitted].
Consider the alternative: If lies become laws, people suffer. The young male known as B.P.J., who sued West Virginia to block its law, has defeated more than 423 girls more than 1,100 times in high school track-and-field events, taking away opportunities and diminishing scholarship prospects for many young women. Just last month, B.P.J. won the women’s state championship in shot put. B.P.J. also allegedly sexually harassed at least one girl, Adaleia Cross, with such vulgar language that she left the sport entirely, because the school refused to address it.
In Idaho, Madison Kenyon and Mary Kate Marshall, who ran track and cross country at Idaho State University, were forced to compete against a male athlete, losing to him every time and witnessing a teammate lose a podium spot as a result. Kallie Keeler, a high school sophomore, recently sued Washington state officials after being sexually assaulted by a male opponent during a wrestling match. Because of Washington’s gender policy, Kallie didn’t even know the wrestler was male until after the match.
Stories like this are why some lawmakers took action. Idaho and West Virginia were among the first states to pass laws grounded upon the self-evident truth that biology creates real and significant differences between the two sexes in strength, speed, and other physical realities that play out in competition. Twenty-five other states followed. Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador and West Virginia Attorney General JB McCuskey led the legal defense of common sense.
That leaves 23 states that, after the Supreme Court’s ruling, are out of excuses.
Lathan Watts is the vice president of public affairs for Alliance Defending Freedom (@ADFLegal) and its sister organization ADF Action. He earned his juris doctor degree from the University of Mississippi.
Editor’s Note: Do you enjoy Townhall’s conservative reporting that takes on the radical Left and woke media? Support our work so that we can continue to bring you the truth.
Join Townhall VIP and use promo code FIGHT to receive 60% off your membership.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member