The United Nations has raised the participation of biological males in women's sports as a human rights issue. general meeting meeting October 8th.
Reem Al-Salem, Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women and Girls, told FOX News Digital: the report she gave me To all 193 United Nations Member States advocating for the safety of women and girls in sport.
“This is not a cultural issue, this is not an individual issue, this is a human rights issue,” Al Salem told FOX News Digital. Her report examines all forms of violence that women and girls around the world experience in sports, including opening up the female category to biological males. are.
”Because the fundamental concerns in the sports world are about competition, winning, the reputation of athletes, and the reputation of sports organizations, anything that could undermine that is hidden, unaddressed, and unaddressed. That’s how it should be,” she said.
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Reem Al-Salem, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, advocates for the safety of women and girls in sport. (ADF International)
As part of the report, Al Salem investigated the “perpetrators of violence” against women in sports, including coaches and fellow athletes, and identified all relevant parties, including states, sports organizations and schools, as well as women. It said it had made recommendations to stakeholders. And girls who play sports.
Al-Salem argued that in the United States and other Western countries, policies that allow biological males to participate in women's sports are “denying men.” [women] their femininity. ”
“They say we don't accept that sex is rooted in biology, so anyone who is biologically male but identifies as female falls into the category of female. “I will be allowed to participate in the competition,” she said. “So biological sex as a determining factor in the category of woman is not important. What matters is how you feel about it.”
”In Afghanistan, [for example]”When they exclude women, it's very clear to them that they are excluding women because they are women, because they are women,” she continued. They do not discuss the reasons for discriminating and persecuting women. It's because they are women, and the misogyny and patriarchal ideas surrounding it, and all approaches to it, are seen as less than feminine. ”
In his report, Al Salem called for the creation of open categories in sports competitions and non-invasive, confidential They are calling for the introduction of highly sensitive sex tests.
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Al-Salem warned that biological males who participate in women's sports are “denying women.” [women] their femininity. ” (Reem Al-Salem)
But Alsalem opens up private female spaces, such as non-sports restrooms and locker rooms, to individuals who are biologically male but identify as female, and the issue goes beyond competition. He claimed that there was. He also said the problem is not unique to the United States, calling it a “worrying trend” observed in many countries.
“Women say, 'We want space as women, biological sex is central to our experiences of womanhood and experiences of discrimination and violence, but when we say that, we We are being punished, we are losing jobs, we are being attacked online and offline, we are being threatened, we are being sued in court, we are being defamed,” she said.
Alsalam also cited the Biden administration's Title IX reforms, which limit opportunities for women under a law first enacted to protect women.
Title IX of the Education Reform Act of 1972 was originally a 37-word law that prohibited schools receiving federal funding from discriminating against students on the basis of sex and ensured equal opportunity for women in educational settings. It was a clause.
The Biden administration has expanded the definition of sex discrimination and harassment under Title IX to include gender identity and sexual orientation, and athletes, experts and activists say these have significant implications for women-only spaces. claims to give.
In December 2023, Alsalam told the Biden administration that changing the definition of womanhood under Title IX would result in “loss of privacy, increased risk of physical harm, increased exposure to sexual harassment and voyeurism, and Similarly, it will change what it means to be a woman.” as psychological distress more frequently accumulated due to loss of privacy, fair and equal sporting and academic opportunities; ”
For example, new changes to Title IX will make men who identify as women eligible for scholarships previously reserved for female athletes, she said.
“For women in sports, it's just a piece of the cake,” she says. “They have very few opportunities, so opening up those few opportunities to males now will reduce their chances even further.”
“This is not only extremely unjust and unfair, but it also shows discrimination against women because they are women or because they are girls,” she added. “This is another manifestation of patriarchy.”
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UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences, Reem Al-Salem (left) and UN Human Rights Officer Olag McCann (right) hold a press conference in Ankara on July 27, 2022. (Adem Altan/AFP via Getty Images)
After al-Salem presented its report at the United Nations, U.S. Third Committee advisor Dylan Lang said: reacted to the findings of the Arsalem study. In his statement, he acknowledged that women and girls face challenges such as violence, harassment and discrimination, but criticized the “demeaning language used against transgender people”.
“Your report rightly states that all people, regardless of their gender identity, have the right to a life free from discrimination,” he said. “Unfortunately, in the same report, you incorrectly confuse transgender people with intersex people and people with naturally occurring variations in sexual characteristics, and when you refer to transgender people, You're using derogatory language.”
Lang went on to talk about U.S. female athletes who are “advocating for equality and safety in sports,” including USA Gymnastics, who spoke out about abuse by team doctor Larry Nassar, and Simone Biles, who left competitive gymnastics. praised them. She highlighted the importance of mental health and Olympian and activist Megan Rapinoe, who fought for equal pay for women's soccer players in the United States.
Rapinoe, in particular, was one of several female athletes who signed a letter asking the NCAA not to enact a policy banning transgender athletes from competing in women's sports. She was asked in July 2023 if she would support a trans woman playing on the U.S. women's national team, even if it meant replacing a biological woman.
“That remains an extremely transphobic part of the discussion,” Rapinoe responded. “I see trans women as real women.”
In June 2024, a reporter asked Rapinoe: “Your U.S. women's soccer team famously lost to high school boys. Do you really think it's fair for those same men to compete in women's sports?” She ignored the question.
Al-Salam told U.S. advisers that the “humiliating term” referring to men who identify as women was exactly that and “factually correct.”
“The text and principles of human rights must remain consistent with science and facts, including biological ones,” she said. “Studies have shown that athletes born male have a performance advantage in sports throughout their lives, but this is most pronounced after adolescence.”
“At the same time, non-discrimination on the basis of sex is recognized in all major international human rights agreements, and … sex must be understood in its ordinary sense meaning biological sex and is not a legal gender category. Confusing gender and gender identity throughout the founding has been confusing and problematic. ”
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Al-Salem told Fox News Digital that she refrains from using the term “culture war” because she believes lifestyle and ideological issues undermine the safety of women and girls in sports. he said.
“It diminishes the importance, it diminishes what's at stake,” she said. “Because this is a rights issue, we prefer to call it a rights war, or a battle for rights, because it's about something so important and core to the dignity and rights of women.”
“Using the term 'culture war' conjures up the image that it is perhaps culturally backward or conservative people who claim the right to women-only categories and spaces, but it is liberal It has nothing to do with being conservative or being conservative,'” she said. “It’s all about claiming your human rights rights, and asking for this is the right thing to do, and it’s not backwards or inconsiderate.”
