Friday 29th March 2024

Home » Frontpage » Currently Reading:

Men In Women’s Sports… When Ideologies Clash

July 1, 2019 Frontpage No Comments

By DEACON MIKE MANNO, JD

In 1972 when Congress passed Title IX only one in 27 women and girls participated in sports; today, nearly fifty years later, that number is closer to two in six. Not only did the law result in more athletic opportunities for women and girls, it also benefited them by opening more avenues for scholarships and elite competition. It was hailed as a monumental civil rights advancement for all women, athlete or not. At the time sex was considered binary: You were either male or female.
Much has changed today. The intellectual elites on the left now claim that sex is non-binary, and is subject to an individual’s assessment of self; it is fluid. In short, you are what you claim to be, and you may change your status at will. And, of late, the judiciary and state laws are, inexplicably, recognizing this “fact.” In 2014 the Maine Supreme Court ruled that a “trans-girl” had the right to use her high school’s women’s restroom. In 2016 the Obama Justice and Education Departments jumped onto the bandwagon warning schools that disallowing trans-boys in the men’s room — or vice-versa — could be considered sex discrimination.
In 2014 a California law went into effect that allowed trans-individuals to participate in sex-segregated school programs, including athletics, consistent with their perceived gender identity. And in 2015 the International Olympic Committee determined that men do not have an unfair advantage competing against women as long as their testosterone levels are consistent with those of female athletes. Since then there has been numerous reports of biological men participating in and winning in women’s sports.
Now we are seeing the premier electoral values of the left — women’s rights and gender equality — meeting on the sports field ready to do battle with one another, all to the detriment of one or both sides.
In one corner we have the real women, those that were born that way, eagerly competing in women’s and girls’ sports and enjoying the benefit of Title IX. In the other corner are the faux or trans-women, who were actually born as men, competing with their bigger and stronger bodies. On the field of play, the faux side is winning and not surprisingly the real side is crying foul.
But while the lefties in the stands watched conflicted, they seemed to at least be rooting, however silently, for the faux team. But there has been some movement on the issue. Our friends Down Under, separated from us by a common language, have recently established new rules, “Guidelines for the inclusion of transgender and gender diverse people in sport.” It was compiled by the Australian Human Rights Commission in conjunction with Sport Australia and published in May.
In it, while it looks favorably on allowing trans-women to play on women’s teams, it does carve out an exception for “discrimination on the grounds of sex or gender identity only in any competitive sporting activity in which the strength, stamina, or physique of competitors is relevant.” But as one hand giveth, the other taketh away. It states further: “If a sporting organization decides to rely on the ‘competitive sporting activity’ exemption…it will need to satisfy itself that strength, stamina, or physique are relevant and how the organization assesses this.”
In other words, the exemption is purely subjective, subject to different interpretations that could render it nonconsequential, especially if read in the context of the entire document.
On the other hand, just as a faux boy won the Maine case, a real girl is challenging a Connecticut rule that allows trans athletes to participate in girls’ track and field.
Selina Soule, with the help of the Alliance Defending Freedom, is asking the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights to investigate whether the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference is discriminating against her by allowing biological males who claim female identity to complete in girls’ events. In Selina’s case, two trans-girls outperformed her in a track event that caused her to finish two positions away from advancing to regional competition.
Selina is not unique. Instances of biological males competing and beating women are being reported more and more often — perhaps just as often the press doesn’t report or covers up the phenomenon. Critics of trans participation in sports, including tennis champion Martina Navratilova, are starting to sound off, claiming that girls and women are being shortchanged by the adoption of policies like those of the Connecticut Athletic Conference.
Rachel McKinnon, a philosophy professor at the College of Charleston, was born a man but won the woman’s world championship bicycling race as a trans-woman. When a real woman competitor, Jennifer Wagner, complained about losing to a biological male, McKinnon posted on a Twitter account that “we have no idea why men, on average, outperform women….I think a lot of the current gap is sociological, not biological.”
Three years ago a trans-girl, Nattaphon Wangyot, won top honors in Alaska’s high school championships. Another, Gabrielle Ludwig, 6-6 and 220 pounds, played women’s basketball at Mission College in Santa Clara, Calif. At the time the former Robert Ludwig was fifty, showing the physical superiority of the male body.
Cong. Ilhan Omar (D., Minn.) has called for the investigation of USA Powerlifting for banning trans-women from competing against real women. In doing so she called the belief that men have a competitive advantage a myth.
Myth or not the truth is that men are larger, stronger, have greater lung capacity, are faster, have more upper-body strength, and have faster reaction times than women. According to the Journal of Applied Physiology, men also have more skeletal muscle mass than women. Perhaps that is why you don’t see a lot of girls masquerading as boys to play on boys’ teams; and when they want to play it is as a girl — not a trans anything — to break the sex barrier, similar to girls who want to be the boys’ football kicker.
So why the fuss? Like so much else this is infused into politics where there are no true facts, only opinions, as leftists like Cong. Omar are prone to claim; thus each of us is entitled to our own version of fact.
So what about young Selina? Well, we know she failed to qualify for the New England regionals because two faux girls bumped her out of the opportunity to participate in front of college coaches where scholarships would be in play. We also know that her track team lost, due to faux girls on the other team.
In her request for an investigation, her attorneys note that one male sophomore athlete failed to advance in the boys’ indoor track events in the winter of 2018. In the spring that same boy began competing as a trans-girl, in the spring outdoor girls’ events where he deprived a real girl of the opportunity to advance in competition. He, or she, depending on your view, now holds more than ten athletic records in Connecticut, records that once belonged to girls.
Selina’s attorney, Christiana Holcomb, perhaps put it best: “Allowing boys to compete in girls’ sports reverses nearly 50 years of advances under [Title IX]….But girls competing against boys know the outcome before the race even starts: They can’t win. Boys will always have physical advantages over girls; that’s the reason we have women’s sports.”
Of course, we know that. But since when have we had the common sense to rely on self-evident facts?
(Mike can be reached at: DeaconMike@q.com.)

Share Button

2019 The Wanderer Printing Co.

Vatican and USCCB leave transgender policy texts unpublished

While U.S. bishops have made headlines for releasing policies addressing gender identity and pastoral ministry, guidelines on the subject have been drafted but not published by both the U.S. bishops’ conference and the Vatican’s doctrinal office, leaving diocesan bishops to…Continue Reading

Biden says Pope Francis told him to continue receiving communion, amid scrutiny over pro-abortion policies

President Biden said that Pope Francis, during their meeting Friday in Vatican City, told him that he should continue to receive communion, amid heightened scrutiny of the Catholic president’s pro-abortion policies.  The president, following the approximately 90-minute-long meeting, a key…Continue Reading

Federal judge rules in favor of Gov. DeSantis’ mask mandate ban

MIAMI (LifeSiteNews) – A federal judge this week handed Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis another legal victory on his mask mandate ban for schools. On Wednesday, Judge K. Michael Moore of the Southern District of Florida denied a petition from…Continue Reading

The Eucharist should not be received unworthily, says Nigerian cardinal

Priests have a duty to remind Catholics not to receive the Eucharist in a state of serious sin and to make confession easily available, a Nigerian cardinal said at the International Eucharistic Congress on Thursday. “It is still the doctrine…Continue Reading

Donald Trump takes a swipe at Catholics and Jews who did not vote for him

Donald Trump complained about Catholics and Jews who did not vote for him in 2020. The former president made the comments in a conference call featuring religious leaders. The move could be seen to shore up his religious conservative base…Continue Reading

Y Gov. Kathy Hochul Admits Andrew Cuomo Covered Up COVID Deaths, 12,000 More Died Than Reported

When it comes to protecting people from COVID, Andrew Cuomo is already the worst governor in America. New York has the second highest death rate per capita, in part because he signed an executive order putting COVID patients in nursing…Continue Reading

Prayers For Cardinal Burke . . . U.S. Cardinal Burke says he has tested positive for COVID-19

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — U.S. Cardinal Raymond L. Burke said he has tested positive for the virus that causes COVID-19. In an Aug. 10 tweet, he wrote: “Praised be Jesus Christ! I wish to inform you that I have recently…Continue Reading

Democrats Block Amendment Banning Late-Term Abortions, Stopping Abortions Up to Birth

Senate Democrats have blocked an amendment that would ban abortions on babies older than 20 weeks. During consideration of the multi-trillion spending package, pro-life Louisiana Senator John Kennedy filed an amendment to ban late-term abortions, but Democrats steadfastly support killing…Continue Reading

Transgender student wins as U.S. Supreme Court rebuffs bathroom appeal

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday handed a victory to a transgender former public high school student who waged a six-year legal battle against a Virginia county school board that had barred him from using the bathroom corresponding…Continue Reading

New York priest accused by security guard of assault confirms charges have now been dropped

NEW YORK, June 17, 2021 (LifeSiteNews) — A New York priest has made his first public statement regarding the dismissal of charges against him.  Today Father George W. Rutler reached out to LifeSiteNews and other media today with the following…Continue Reading

21,000 sign petition protesting US Catholic bishops vote on Biden, abortion

More than 21,000 people have signed a letter calling for U.S. Catholic bishops to cancel a planned vote on whether President Biden should receive communion.  Biden, a Catholic, supports abortion rights and has long come under attack from some Catholics over that…Continue Reading

Bishop Gorman seeks candidates to fill two full time AP level teaching positions for the 2021-2022 school year in the subject areas of Calculus/Statistics and Physics

Bishop Thomas K. Gorman Regional Catholic School is a college preparatory school located in Tyler, Texas. It is an educational ministry of the Catholic Diocese of Tyler led by Bishop Joseph Strickland. The sixth through twelfth grade school provides a…Continue Reading

Untitled 5 Untitled 2

Attention Readers:

  Welcome to our website. Readers who are familiar with The Wanderer know we have been providing Catholic news and orthodox commentary for 150 years in our weekly print edition.


  Our daily version offers only some of what we publish weekly in print. To take advantage of everything The Wanderer publishes, we encourage you to su
bscribe to our flagship weekly print edition, which is mailed every Friday or, if you want to view it in its entirety online, you can subscribe to the E-edition, which is a replica of the print edition.
 
  Our daily edition includes: a selection of material from recent issues of our print edition, news stories updated daily from renowned news sources, access to archives from The Wanderer from the past 10 years, available at a minimum charge (this will be expanded as time goes on). Also: regularly updated features where we go back in time and highlight various columns and news items covered in The Wanderer over the past 150 years. And: a comments section in which your remarks are encouraged, both good and bad, including suggestions.
 
  We encourage you to become a daily visitor to our site. If you appreciate our site, tell your friends. As Catholics we must band together to rediscover our faith and share it with the world if we are to effectively counter a society whose moral culture seems to have no boundaries and a government whose rapidly extending reach threatens to extinguish the rights of people of faith to practice their religion (witness the HHS mandate). Now more than ever, vehicles like The Wanderer are needed for clarification and guidance on the issues of the day.

Catholic, conservative, orthodox, and loyal to the Magisterium have been this journal’s hallmarks for five generations. God willing, our message will continue well into this century and beyond.

Joseph Matt
President, The Wanderer Printing Co.

Untitled 1

Catechism

Today . . .

Abortion Advocates No Longer Consider It “A Necessary Evil,” They Celebrate Killing Babies

Last week, Kamala Harris became the first vice president in U.S. history to make a public visit to an abortion clinic. Though the Democratic party’s support for abortion is nothing new, Harris’ Planned Parenthood appearance does illustrate how that support has become a flagrant celebration of abortion as a public and personal good, essential to both “freedom” and to “healthcare.” At the appearance, Harris proclaimed,  It is only right and fair that people have access…Continue Reading

Wisconsin Supreme Court says Catholic charity group cannot claim religious tax exemption

The Wisconsin Supreme Court on Thursday ruled that a major Catholic charity group’s activities were not “primarily” religious under state law, stripping the group of a key tax break and ordering it to pay into the state unemployment system. Catholic Charities Bureau (CCB) last year argued that the state had improperly removed its designation as a religious organization.  The charity filed a lawsuit after the state said it did not qualify to be considered as an organization…Continue Reading

Walgreens and CVS Will Start Selling Abortion Pills That Kill Babies

The two largest pharmacies in America will start selling abortion pills this month that end the lives of unborn children by starting them to death. Walgreens and CVS will both sell the abortion pills despite the fact that they kill a developing human being and have killed at least dozens of women and injured tens of thousands more. They plan to initially roll out abortion drug sales in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, California…Continue Reading

Cardinal Burke announces novena to Our Lady of Guadalupe for ‘crises of our age’

VATICAN CITY (PerMariam) — Raymond Cardinal Burke has announced the start of a global, nine-month novena to Our Lady of Guadalupe, calling on Catholics to beseech Mary’s intercession on the Church and the world in the face of the “crises of our age.” In a new endeavour published online over the weekend, Cardinal Burke announced a novena beginning in March, and culminating on the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe on December 12.

Texas attorney general targets Catholic nonprofit, alleges it facilitates illegal immigration

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Feb 21, 2024 / 21:15 pm Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is trying to shut down a Catholic nonprofit organization in El Paso based on allegations that the group may be facilitating illegal immigration, harboring immigrants who entered the country illegally, and engaging in human smuggling.  Paxton filed a lawsuit against the nonprofit Annunciation House, which has operated in the state for nearly 50 years. The lawsuit asks the District Court of El Paso…Continue Reading

The King of Kings

Cindy Paslawski We are at the end of the Church year. We began with Advent a year ago, commemorating the time awaiting the coming of the Christ and we are ending these weeks later with a vision of the future, a vision of Christ the King of the Universe on His throne before us all.…Continue Reading

7,000 Pro-Lifers March In London

By STEVEN ERTELT LONDON (LifeNews) — Over the weekend, some seven thousand pro-life people in the UK participated in the March for Life in London to protest abortion.They marched to Parliament Square on Saturday, September 2 under the banner of “Freedom to Live” and had to deal with a handful of radical abortion activists.During the…Continue Reading

An Appeal For Prayer For The Armenian People

By RAYMOND LEO CARDINAL BURKE (Editor’s Note: His Eminence Raymond Cardinal Burke on August 29, 2023, issued this prayer for the Armenian people, noting their unceasing love for Christ, even in the face of persecution.) + + On the Feast of the Beheading of St. John the Baptist, having a few days ago celebrated the…Continue Reading

Robert Hickson, Founding Member Of Christendom College, Dies At 80

By MAIKE HICKSON FRONT ROYAL, Va. (LifeSiteNews) — Robert David Hickson, Jr., of Front Royal, Va., died at his home on September 2, 2023, at 21:29 p.m. after several months of suffering and after having received the Last Rites of the Catholic Church. He was surrounded by friends and family.Robert is survived by me —…Continue Reading

The Real Hero Of “Sound of Freedom”… Says The Film Has Strengthened The Fight Against Child Trafficking

By ANA PAULA MORALES (CNA) —Tim Ballard, a former U.S. Homeland Security agent who risked his life to fight child trafficking, discussed the impact of the movie Sound of Freedom, which is based on his work, in an August 29 interview with ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. “I’ve spent more than 20 years helping…Continue Reading

Advertisement

Our Catholic Faith (Section B of print edition)

Catholic Replies

Editor’s Note: This lesson on medical-moral issues is taken from the book Catholicism & Ethics. Please feel free to use the series for high schoolers or adults. We will continue to welcome your questions for the column as well. The email and postal addresses are given at the end of this column. Special Course On Catholicism And Ethics (Pages 53-59)…Continue Reading

Color Politics An Impediment To Faith

By FR. KEVIN M. CUSICK The USCCB is rightly concerned about racism, as they should be about any sin. In the 2018 statement Open Wide Our Hearts, they affirm the dignity of every human person: “But racism still profoundly affects our culture, and it has no place in the Christian heart. This evil causes great harm to its victims, and…Continue Reading

Trademarks Of The True Messiah

By MSGR. CHARLES POPE (Editor’s Note: Msgr. Charles Pope posted this essay on September 2, and it is reprinted here with permission.) + + In Sunday’s Gospel the Lord firmly sets before us the need for the cross, not as an end in itself, but as the way to glory. Let’s consider the Gospel in three stages.First: The Pattern That…Continue Reading

A Beacon Of Light… The Holy Cross And Jesus’ Unconditional Love

By FR. RICHARD D. BRETON Each year on September 14 the Church celebrates the Feast Day of the Exultation of the Holy Cross. The Feast Day of the Triumph of the Holy Cross commemorates the day St. Helen found the True Cross. It is fitting then, that today we should focus on the final moments of Jesus’ life on the…Continue Reading

Our Ways Must Become More Like God’s Ways

By FR. ROBERT ALTIER Twenty-Fifth Sunday In Ordinary Time (YR A) Readings: Isaiah 55:6-9Phil. 1:20c-24, 27aMatt. 20:1-16a In the first reading today, God tells us through the Prophet Isaiah that His thoughts are not our thoughts and His ways are not our ways. This should not come as a surprise to anyone, especially when we look at what the Lord…Continue Reading

The Devil And The Democrats

By FR. DENIS WILDE, OSA States such as Minnesota, California, Maryland, and others, in all cases with Democrat-controlled legislatures, are on a fast track to not only allow unborn babies to be murdered on demand as a woman’s “constitutional right” but also to allow infanticide.Our nation has gotten so used to the moral evil of killing in the womb that…Continue Reading

Crushed But Unbroken . . . The Martyrdom Of St. Margaret Clitherow

By RAY CAVANAUGH The late-1500s were a tough time for Catholics in England, where the Reformation was in full gear. A 1581 law prohibited Catholic religious ceremonies. And a 1584 Act of Parliament mandated that all Catholic priests leave the country or else face execution. Some chose to remain, however, so they could continue serving the faithful.Also taking huge risks…Continue Reading

Advertisement(2)