The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division warned California officials Wednesday that it is opening an investigation into whether the Golden State violates federal civil rights law by allowing males to compete in women’s sports.
“Title IX exists to protect women and girls in education. It is perverse to allow males to compete against girls, invade their private spaces, and take their trophies,” Harmeet K. Dhillon, assistant attorney general for civil rights, said in a statement on the move. “This Division will aggressively defend women’s hard-fought rights to equal educational opportunities.”
“The law is clear: Discrimination on the basis of sex is illegal and immoral,” Bill Essayli, the U.S. attorney for the Central District of California, said in a statement. “My office and the rest of the Department of Justice will work tirelessly to protect girls’ sports and stop anyone – public officials included – from violating women’s civil rights.”
The investigation aims to determine whether California, its senior legal, educational, and athletic organizations, and the Jurupa Unified School District violated Title IX, a federal civil rights law forbidding discrimination on the basis of sex in educational settings. The Justice Department is probing whether AB 1266—a bill passed by the California Legislature and codified in the California Education Code which allows males to compete in women’s sports—violates Title IX.
The Justice Department also filed a statement of interest supporting a lawsuit challenging AB 1266. Save Girls’ Sports v. Thurmond includes two anonymous high school female athletes, one of whom was removed from her position on the girls’ varsity cross-country team to make room for a biological male athlete who allegedly failed to satisfy many of the team’s varsity eligibility requirements.
President Donald Trump condemned Gov. Gavin Newsom, D-Calif., Tuesday for allowing males in women’s sports.
“California, under the leadership of Radical Left Democrat Gavin Newscum, continues to ILLEGALLY allow ‘MEN TO PLAY IN WOMEN’S SPORTS,’” the president posted on Truth Social. “This week a transitioned Male athlete, at a major event, won ‘everything,’ and is now qualified to compete in the ‘State Finals’ next weekend. As a Male, he was a less than average competitor. As a Female, this transitioned person is practically unbeatable.”
“THIS IS NOT FAIR, AND TOTALLY DEMEANING TO WOMEN AND GIRLS,” he added. “Please be hereby advised that large scale Federal Funding will be held back, maybe permanently, if the Executive Order on this subject matter is not adhered to.”
Trump issued an executive order to protect women’s sports in February.
Trump noted that Newsom himself admitted that males competing in women’s sports is “UNFAIR.”
Newsom made the comment on his podcast, “This is Gavin Newsom” with Turning Point USA President Charlie Kirk.
“I think it’s an issue of fairness, I completely agree with you on that. It is an issue of fairness — it’s deeply unfair,” he said at the time. “I totally agree with you. … I revere sports. So, the issue of fairness is completely legit.”
Trump did not specify the male athlete, but the Ventura County Star reported that AB Hernandez, a junior on the Jurupa Valley High School track and field team, will be the only openly transgender athlete competing at the California Interscholastic Federation’s State Track and Field meet at Buchanan High School in Clovis on Friday and Saturday.
Following Trump’s statement, the federation expanded its eligibility to allow “any biological female student-athlete” to compete in the finals, so long as she initially failed to qualify for the event due to a male athlete edging her out. The federation claimed it made the decision to expand the field “this past weekend” before Trump’s post.
Trump invited Payton McNabb, who sustained a permanent injury when a man spiked a volleyball into her head while playing high school volleyball, to his joint address to Congress earlier this year.
This is a breaking news story and it will be updated.
