April marks Sexual Assault Awareness Month, a time dedicated to shedding light on an issue that disproportionately affects women and girls and building support for policies to fight sexual assault and violence. Yet, there are few advocates raising awareness for the women and girls who are forced to undress alongside fully grown men. How is it not considered harassment when minors are told they must undress in front of males fully intact with male genitalia and if they complain they will face punishment?
That’s what happened to me at the University of Pennsylvania when I was told I had to share a locker room with 'Lia' Thomas, an intact, 6’4” biological male. My teammates and I were forced to undress with a male, not once or twice, but 18 times per week. Some girls opted to change in bathroom stalls and others used the family bathroom to avoid this. When we tried to voice our concern to the Athletic Department, we were told that sharing the locker room was non-negotiable and we were offered psychological services to attempt to re-educate us to become comfortable with the idea of undressing in front of a male.
The traditional “social justice warriors” who insist society “believe all women” have no interest in listening to the women who speak up about the invasion of males into women’s spaces. I found this particularly shocking since I am myself a sexual assault survivor.
Ironically, the same people who had previously stood by the #MeToo movement and parroted “believe all women” were the same who publicly said my story sounded made up. Their true colors were shown: apparently, it’s believe only the women who can advance far-Left political policies and who buy into the idea that any man can become a woman.
By allowing males to self-identify as women, we are putting women in danger. For example, just recently at a Planet Fitness in Alaska, a fully grown adult man was undressing next to a 12-year-old girl. When a woman tried to raise her concerns about this, her membership was promptly terminated. Why is this story and the violation these women faced not worthy of awareness this month? Or what about the women in prisons who are being forced to share cells with violent males, many of whom have been convicted of sexual crimes? Why is no one raising awareness for the incarcerated women who are forced to live in unsafe conditions and are sexually assaulted and abused at the hands of men taking advantage of these “inclusive” policies? Unfortunately, these stories are not uncommon. For example, in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, a male tennis coach undressed alongside female high school girls and many expressed their discomfort with it. Like most of the women and girls going through this, they were told to put aside their concerns and instead validate the feelings and identity of a male.
If we want to raise awareness of assault survivors, we cannot pick and choose. In my own experience, before I spoke publicly on the importance of keeping males out of women’s sports and spaces, people were very supportive and understanding of my history as a survivor of sexual assault. After speaking out, I am regularly faced with far-Left activists invalidating my experiences, accusing me of lying, and trying to silence me. It’s clear these so-called “advocates” and the creators of Sexual Assault Awareness Month do not care about protecting survivors, but instead do so to virtue signal and stroke the egos of the leftist activists that jump from issue to issue, with no intentions of making impactful changes on society.
Males, no matter how they identify, pose an increased risk to women and girls. By allowing individuals to self-ID, we are inviting any and all predatory males to enter female spaces. It is estimated at least 90% of perpetrators of sexual assault are male, and over 90% of victims are female. This statistic alone should show us why sex-segregated spaces are so important. When women express discomfort in sharing private spaces with males, we should acknowledge their feelings, as we cannot teach generations of impressionable young girls to ignore their instincts. By forcing them to seek therapy if they object to undressing alongside men, we are opening the doors for further sexual abuse and assault. If our goal is to raise awareness and prevent further assaults from occurring, we cannot continue ignoring these stories. Future generations of women and girls depend on us to stand firm and end this. So, this April, let’s fight to raise awareness of the stories of assault and abuse that have been swept under the rug. If we are going to have an entire month dedicated to this, it’s time we start raising awareness for ALL survivors of abuse and assault, not just those who have preferred political beliefs.
Paula Scanlan is an ambassador with Independent Women’s Forum (iwf.org) and a former swimmer at the University of Pennsylvania, where she was a teammate of 'Lia'Thomas.