USA Powerlifting will now be forced to allow biological men that now identify as women to take part in the women’s divisions of their weightlifting competitions after this past week had them losing an anti-discrimination lawsuit.
A state court out of Minnesota officially ruled that the group must alter its policies over the course of the next two weeks so as to allow all trans-identifying men to take part in competitions in the women’s categories, as reported by FOx News. They are now being pressed by the courts to “cease and desist from all unfair discriminatory practices,” which means, in this particular case, limiting inclusion on a basis of gender identity.
“The harm is in making a person pretend to be something different, the implicit message being that who they are is less than,” explained the ruling in one section. “That is the very essence of separation and segregation, and it is what the [Minnesota Human Rights Act] prohibits.”
Originally submitted by JayCee Cooper, a trans-identifying man who accused the organization of violating the state’s Human Rights Act by blocking all men from taking part in female competitions, back in 2019. Cooper officially a lawsuit targeting USA Powerlifting within the state court back in 2021, explained the publication.
“I was fed up with the way that I was being treated; I was fed up with the way that my community was being treated, and enough was enough,” explained Cooper to local outlet KARE-TV.
The athlete issued a response to the released verdict, stating, “I feel mostly relief. I think we needed a win here, and it feels good to get that.”
An appeal from USA Powerlifting is expected to take place. “Our position has been aimed at balancing the needs of cis- and transgender women whose capacities differ significantly in purely strength sports,” explained Larry Maile, the president of the organization.
“We have received a summary judgment decision from the Court finding us liable for discrimination. We respectfully disagree with the Court’s conclusions. We are considering all of our options, including appeal,” Maile went on.
This issue regarding transgender sports has been a prime topic for a number of years. One of the most headline prolific cases involved Lia Thomas, a swimmer for the University of Pennsylvania that is a trans-identifying man that ended up smashing through records while taking part in the division created for solely women.
Both powerlifting and swimming are not the only sports to deal with extreme controversy. How and when to allow trans-identifying athletes has been spoken about in relation to things such as surfing, cycling, basketball, running, track and field, ice skating, and a whole host of other sports.
Despite the fact that most groups seem to be reluctant to build a new league solely for trans0identifying people, it is happening in the boxing world. Officials with the WOrld Boxing Council have stated previously that the international professional prizefighting group would build an entirely new category for transgender fights in 2023.
