Georgia GOP Advances Yet Another Transgender Sports Ban

Georgia Republicans advanced a bill Thursday banning transgender students from playing on teams that align with their gender identity.

State senators passed the bill 34-22 along party lines, sending it on to the state House for review. Under the legislation, it would be illegal for a public school team to compete if it permits “a person of one gender to participate in an athletic program or activity that is designated for persons of the opposite gender.”

Although there is no documented pattern of transgender athletes having an unfair advantage in sports, the bill, which limits gender to sex assigned at birth, claims the legislation maintains state interests in “protecting females from harm and preserving the fairness of sports.”

Civil rights groups warn that the real harm will be done to transgender kids, which are “one of our most vulnerable populations,” the Human Rights Campaign’s counsel Cathryn Oakley said in a statement.

“Transgender students have played sports consistent with their gender identity in many states across the country, in some cases for decades, and there simply have not been problems,” she said. “Further, there is no evidence that the participation of trans athletes in school-sponsored sports in Georgia has been problematic. This unwarranted bill should advance no further in the legislative process.”

Georgia’s Democratic party also condemned the bill, with spokesperson Rebecca Galanti calling it a “dangerous ploy to rally political support in an election year by demonizing Georgia’s transgender community and threatening kids and teenagers.”

All 56 seats in the Georgia Senate are up for election in November.

Other members of the state legislature called the bill “pathetic” and expressed their apologies to the state’s transgender children.

Around half of transgender youths contemplated or attempted suicide in 2021, a study by the Trevor Project found. Another poll the group released last month found that more than 60% of LGBTQ+ youth said their mental health had deteriorated in response to recent anti-transgender legislation, including bills related to sports.

State Sen. Sally Harrell (D), who has a transgender child, tearfully pled with other members of the Senate not to act so hastily on the matter.

“This is an issue that isn’t new. It’s been around a long time. But we’re dealing with it in a new way, and we don’t understand it. Let’s not move so fast, because this is hurting our kids,” she said.

The bill’s sponsor, state Sen. Marty Harbin (R), took no questions during Thursday’s hearing, but he’s previously said he didn’t know of any transgender students who’ve taken the spots of girls on female sports teams, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

State Sen. Matt Brass (R), a supporter of the bill, said during Thursday’s hearing that the legislation was a matter of women’s rights.

“I believe that women’s sports are one of the greatest tools that we have in our constant fight for gender equality,” he said. “And this bill simply helps protect that — nothing more, nothing less.”

The bill is expected to win support in the Georgia House as well, where Republicans have 25 more seats than Democrats. If it reaches the desk of Gov. Brian Kemp (R), he’s likely to sign it into law. He signaled his support for the legislation last month, saying during his State of the State speech that he hopes to soon sign a bill that will “ensure fairness in school sports.”

Nearly a dozen other states have passed and enacted similar laws, most recently South Dakota.