OAN’s Avril Elfie
11:25am – Tuesday, April 2, 2024
Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers has vetoed a proposal to ban transgender athletes from high school sports.
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On Tuesday, Evers (D-Wis.) rejected a proposal to ban transgender student-athletes from competing on sports teams that match their gender identity.
Evers said the Republican-led bill is “hateful and discriminatory” and part of a broader attack on transgender rights across the country.
“I am vetoing this entire bill because I oppose codifying discrimination into state law,” Evers wrote.
“I don’t think this bill is consistent with Wisconsin’s values. We expect our children to treat each other with kindness, respect, empathy, and compassion, and we expect adults to lead by example.” We should be able to show that,” Evers continued. “I urge the Republican majority to carefully consider the harmful effects of their efforts and actions on children before introducing similar legislation in the future.”
This bill would require public and private schools in Wisconsin to determine student-athlete eligibility for intramural, interscholastic, and club sports based on gender assigned at birth, rather than gender identity. was. Evers previously promised to veto the bill.
Democrats in the state Legislature argued the proposal was an attack on an already vulnerable group, while Republicans countered that it was necessary to maintain fair competition in women’s sports.
The bill was approved by the state House in October on a party-line vote of 63-35.
Following a similar partisan divide, the state Senate voted 21-11 last month to send the bill to Evers. Both chambers lack the two-thirds majority needed to override a veto.
Evers’ veto letter said the bill ignores the policies of the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association, which has regulated the eligibility of transgender high school athletes in the state since 2015. The policy, which requires transgender women and girls to undergo at least one full year of hormone therapy before being allowed to participate on women’s sports teams, is based on NCAA guidelines.
He also wrote that the proposed bill violates federal law because it discriminates on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.
“States across this country can give way to radical policies that target LGBTQ individuals and families and threaten their daily lives and ability to feel safe, valued, supported, and welcomed as who they are. ,” Evers wrote in his veto message. “As long as I am governor of this great state, Wisconsin will not be among them.”
Under the Biden administration’s proposed amendments to historic civil rights law, states would not be able to ban transgender student-athletes from participating.
At least 24 other states have laws banning transgender athletes from competing on school sports teams that match their gender identity, according to reports.
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