Massachusetts Girls’ Basketball Team Forfeits over Trans Athlete

Transgender athletes have been quite a sticking point in many areas of sport over the last few years. As a protest, a Massachusetts girls’ basketball team forfeited a game because the opposing team had a transgender athlete among its ranks. Is this a fair move by the team, or are they being discriminatory? Let’s take a look.

Halftime Forfeit Once The Facts Came Out

The Massachusetts girls’ basketball team threw in the towel halfway through the match as their coach found out that a member of the opposing team was a transgender athlete.

When the team forfeited the match, they were down 10-0. Naturally, such a move has sparked a lot of controversy as to whether the team was right to forfeit or if it was unsportsmanlike behavior.

Injuries Played a Part in the Decision

The Collegiate Charter School of Lowell Girls’ Basketball Team abandoned the February 8^th game at halftime because the coach was concerned about the third injury on his team.

According to reports, the player who injured the girls in their game was biologically female, although they identified as male. Fox News reports that the athlete was six feet tall and had facial hair.

Maybe It Was a Tactical Decision

The school’s spokesperson, Casey Crane, noted that the reason the coach decided to concede the game was because he was already down four players from the twelve-player squad.

The loss of three more players put the school’s chances at the Charter School playoffs in question, and the coach decided to throw in the towel rather than risk his players’ health.

Kids Worried About Playing

Crane said that after the third player went down, the remaining five players on the team raised their concerns about having to play against such a rough opponent.

Thus, the coach forfeited to maintain the well-being of his team. However, this raises many questions about what counts as acceptable behavior in sports and which athletes should be matched against whom.

Shocking Video Reveals The Truth

A video of the court during the match highlights why the kids on the team were not thrilled to be playing against a more significant, stronger individual in a sporting event.

In the video, the transgender athlete is seen forcefully ripping the ball away from the Collegiate Charter player, causing her to fall. She continues to struggle to move after the fall and is visibly writhing in pain.

No Exclusion In Sports

The Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) has a particular section in its charter that highlights that there should be no exclusion in sports based on gender identity.

Section 43.3.1 outlines that a student can be a member of a sports team of the gender that they identify with, but this raises some serious questions about biological capability.

Ambiguous Statements About Unfair Advantage

The handbook also states that a student cannot be listed on a team if they would give the team an unfair advantage. Yet, in the case of listing a male identifying as a female, there is a clear advantage.

The handbook suggests that schools communicate with their opponents before the start of a match to ensure that inclusiveness doesn’t cross the lines of competitiveness. It doesn’t seem like this was done here.

Distinct Biological Differences in Male and Female Bodies

Researchers and sports scientists have long been keeping an eye on transgender athletes in the field of play. Many of them have opinions that would not be considered politically correct.

Males, for example, gain increased muscle mass when they hit puberty, allowing them to carry more, throw further, and run faster than females. This is why there are gender differences in sports.

Size, Strength, and Ability

There are many sports where competitive advantage might not be considered. For example, 40% of elite fencers in fencing demonstrate left-handedness, even though only 10% of the population is left-handed.

However, if we extrapolate to a boxing ring, there’s an obvious advantage for a larger boxer compared to a smaller one. The larger boxer has more power, even though the more diminutive boxer might be more agile.

Differences Don’t Necessarily Matter

In some sports, such as chess, there’s no difference between a male and female competitor because no innate physical ability is needed to move a chess piece.

In the sport of track and field, however, a male who identifies as a female can easily out-throw, outrun, and out-compete most females. Even a mediocre male athlete identifying as a female can out-compete some of the best female athletes.

Several States Have Passed Anti-Trans Athletes Laws

Since 2020, twenty-three states have passed legislation governing the participation of transgender athletes in sports. However, the laws vary from state to state, making it difficult to tell what is legal where.

To create a more homogenous system, HR 734 was introduced. This federal bill made it a violation of Title IX to allow athletes of male biological sex to participate in sporting activities designed for women.

The Legislation Clarifies What It Means

One of the things that legislation has problems with is properly defining terms, but HR 734 was clear. It stated that “sex,” in this case, was based solely on a person’s biological definition at birth.

Many states have challenged this bill, and President Joe Biden stated he would veto it if it came to him. The Supreme Court will probably hear this particular issue at some point.

International Organizations Have Their Own Opinions

There is a global climate of restrictive policies regarding transgender athletes. The World Athletics, World Aquatics, and International Cycling Unions have all barred transgender women from participating.

The ban only applies to transgender women who have transitioned post-puberty and only applies to elite women’s sporting events. Lower competitive levels have their own governing laws.

No Dissidence Will be Tolerated

When the clip of the game went online showing the transgender athlete injuring her opponents, it was clear who was the aggressor and why such a student should be excluded from play.

Many commentators noted that if the player were a female who was playing aggressively and wantonly causing injury to their opponents, she would be ejected from play. Not in this case, however. For some unknown reason, wantonly causing injury in a contact sport was simply brushed off as unimportant.

KIPP Academy Addresses The Comments

In a statement, the KIPP Academy, which fielded the transgender athlete, stated that they thought they did the right thing by offering the player a chance to compete on their team.

The spokesperson went on to say that the player participated in other sporting events without any incident. However, it was clear from the clip of the match that the transgender athlete had indeed caused injury to her opponents.

Not Compassionate, Kind, Or Inclusive

Based on the language put forward by the MIAA, having trans athletes compete was supposed to be compassionate, kind, and inclusive. Yet the clip posted online was obviously not that. It showed an aggressive male identifying as female, taking advantage of the other team’s players.

The clip was posted by former collegiate swimmer Riley Gaines, who is a vocal opponent to including transgender athletes in women’s sports. KIPP Academy shot back and said that they condemned harmful online statements about their player.

A Political Issue That No One Consults Athletes About

The inclusivity of transgender athletes has become a really touchy topic in recent years, with many organizations calling for all transgender athletes to be included in competitions across the board. However, most female athletes have the opposite view.

Many of the opponents to including trans athletes in women’s sports are either current or former competitors who know what it would mean for them. Not to mention how unfair it would be to female athletes at the top of their game.

Political Rhetoric Denies The Truth

Some political proponents of inclusion state that disbarring trans women would reinforce stereotypes that women should be protected. But these statements ignore the facts of biological development and seem to be attacking women for wanting to stand up for their right to compete.

Female athletes who have trained all their lives to get to the pinnacle of their sport now face a difficult battle. In the case of this incident, it shows that even in high school, including transgender athletes in sports will simply lead to demoralizing situations where the trans athlete can get away with anything while being protected by political rhetoric.

What Does This Mean for Female Athletes?

The jury is still out on the differences between trans athletes and athletes of a biological sex. However, under no circumstances should rough play be allowed to continue in a basketball competition if it leads to injury on the other team. Additionally, this sets the stage for abuses by competitive teams.

What’s stopping a team wanting to qualify for a state or regional championship from finding enough mediocre male players to identify as female? According to the MIAA, they should be allowed to play, even if they have a competitive advantage. It seems that the rules only apply to one set of people, and if you identify as a different gender, you get a free pass to be as aggressive as you like.