Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2023

Floor Speech

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Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Chair, the House is considering a Republican-led bill that would prohibit transgender girls from participating in girls' and women's athletic programs.

This bill undermines the key purpose of Title IX--which is to eliminate sex discrimination in federally funded education programs-- and it removes protections against gender identity discrimination in the context of athletic programs.

Young people participate in sports to be part of a team, learn sportsmanship, and challenge themselves. However, this bill seeks to strip trans girls of all ages of these opportunities and would limit opportunities for nonbinary and trans students as well as subject all students to egregious invasions of privacy.

We cannot let anti-LGBTQ Republicans use ``protecting women'' as an excuse for targeting and discriminating against trans kids. This isn't about sports or gender equity; it's about attacking LGBTQ kids.

We must stand up against this bill and the larger coordinated attack against transgender people and the LGBTQ community. We've seen hundreds of anti-LGBTQ bills, with many specifically targeting transgender people, introduced in states across the country this year.

Some extreme conservatives have even gone as far as calling for the ``eradication'' of transgender people.

We must stand up for the rights of all people and protect school children--regardless of their gender identity, and ensure that everyone has equal access to opportunities, including playing sports.

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