Should Trans Women Compete in Women's Sports?

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Mauricio V. Genta, CC BY-SA 4.0 

Should trans women be allowed to compete with biological women in sporting events? That is, should men be allowed to compete in women's sports? When you put it that way, it sounds rather silly, doesn't it? Of course it does. It is silly. The very idea that a person born a biological male should be allowed to compete against biological females because he has chosen to live as a female as an adult is absolutely preposterous. Anyone who disagrees that it is preposterous is either supremely ignorant or so ideologically twisted, they no longer have access to their own common sense. 

The argument that men should be allowed to compete with women in sporting events seems to stem from some absurd assertion that trans women are women. No, they are not. Trans women are men who have decided to live as women. That is a legitimate decision for those who genuinely feel that their happiness and fulfillment as a person is best promoted by transitioning from their birth sex to the opposite sex. Their friends, family and society as a whole should support trans people, since all of us should be supported in pursuing our own happiness, so long as our pursuit does not negatively affect others. 

And that's where the conflict emerges. 

Not to disillusion those who claim that trans women are women, but every cell in the human body carries the genetic code of the person's birth sex. If a man commits a crime, for example, and leaves DNA evidence behind, say a drop of blood, that DNA can be analyzed in order to obtain a DNA profile for that criminal. One of the things that can be discerned is whether the person who shed the blood drop was male or female. That evidence remains in that man's every cell for the rest of his life, regardless of how much hormone therapy he has or how many surgeries he undergoes. 

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jenaragon94, CC BY 2.0 

Gender dysphoria is a real diagnosis, and it is a painful one for those who suffer from it. It is also a rare diagnosis. It is rare for a male or a female to genuinely and persistently feel that he or she is actually the opposite sex. Many trans people today, therefore, are choosing to transition for reasons other than true gender dysphoria. It seems to be a fad, a social trend and at times a political statement. This doesn't diminish the trans person's right to support and respect, provided he or she is at least 18 years of age, the age of legal adulthood in the United States. (childhood gender dysphoria is for another blog entry!)

Certainly, changing one's sex is a major life decision and not to be taken lightly. As with all major life decisions, there are pros and cons to be considered. There will always be advantages and disadvantages to making such a profound change in one's life. One of the disadvantages to becoming a trans woman is that you cannot compete with biological women in sporting events. It is not fair. 

Since trans women are not actually women, they retain the physical differences they were born with, even after hormone therapy and surgery to alter genitals. Men have a greater lung capacity, larger and longer muscle structures, larger hearts, greater endurance capacity, larger and stronger bones, to name just some of their physical advantages. To allow them to compete against women is blatantly and unequivocally unfair. There is simply no question about it. 

Wikimedia
Virginia Tehan (mother of Karyn Marshall), CC BY-SA 2.5 

Those who promote trans women in competition with biological women are demonstrating their stupidity as well as their disregard for the rights of female athletes. Women's sport will be ruined if trans men continue to be allowed in women's competitions. Already, female swimming and track and field athletes have experienced the injustice of biological men, with all their physical advantages, winning championships by wide margins that the women athletes cannot hope to equal. Most recently, trans women have been allowed to compete in weight lifting! How insanely absurd is that? 

Let's be real. Trans women are not women. They are men who are choosing to live as women. There is a reason why men's and women's sports are separate. It is because their physiological differences cause a disparity in their ability to perform in their sport. It is not fair for biological men to compete in women's sports. Period, end of story.

Kat