Student athletes at Texas public high schools must show their birth
certificates as proof of gender identity under a policy change adopted
overwhelmingly in February by school superintendents. LGBT activists say
the change is unfair to transgender athletes but supporters note
attempts to erase biological gender are an untested social experiment
with far-reaching and unforeseen consequences.
“You start needing to check birth certificates when you have a
breakdown of honesty, integrity, or, in this case, worldview,” said John
Stonestreet, president of the Colson Center for Christian Worldview.
“But requiring a birth certificate is not the issue. What’s going on now
is a social experiment. The concept of gender being detached from
biological, sexual reality is brand new.”
The University Interscholastic League (UIL), the state’s governing body
for high school sports, said the requirement will systematize advice
the league has been giving to superintendents. The policy change,
adopted by a 586-32 vote, goes into effect Aug. 1.
“When we were asked by a school for guidance, that was the
recommendation we gave them, although we told them to work through their
own process and own legal counsel as well,” said UIL policy director
Jamey Harrison.
Peter Sprigg, senior fellow for policy studies at the Family Research
Council (FRC), said the decision to define the policy is a good one.
“Our position at FRC is that government entities, including schools,
have no obligation to recognize a change in gender identity from the
biological sex at birth,” he said. “This is especially important when it
comes to athletics because there are undeniable physical differences
between the sexes.”
Birth certificates can be amended to change gender, but transgender
advocates say the difficulty and expense of the process are prohibitive
and could deny transgender athletes the opportunity to compete.
“At the high school level, we should be encouraging participation for
all students,” said Chris Mosier, founder of TransAthlete.com. “Texas
school leaders have a responsibility to ensure that transgender athletes
can participate in a way that is safe, comfortable, and affirming of
their identity.”
But Stonestreet and Sprigg assert the created order inherent to
Christian belief should take precedent over individual choice. Anything
else, Sprigg said, is “rebellion” against God.
“From a Christian perspective, the Bible says several times ‘male and
female He created them’ and this is a part of the created order,” Sprigg
said. “From a theological perspective, to seek to change one’s gender
is a rebellion against God’s created order.”
Compassion and therapy are appropriate responses to people who want to
change their gender and that therapy can “help them overcome these
feelings rather than simply indulging feelings that are contrary to
nature,” Sprigg added.
The Texas amendment is in stark contrast to new transgender rules for
Olympic athletes. In late January, the International Olympic Committee
(IOC) announced it would allow an athlete to compete as a member of the
sex with which he or she identified, even without first undergoing
gender reassignment surgery.
Now, female-to-male transgender athletes are eligible to take part in
men’s competitions without restrictions. Male-to-female transgender
athletes must demonstrate that testosterone levels are below a certain
level for at least a year before their first competition.
The Texas policy change also flies in the face of laws across the
country allowing transgender people to choose bathrooms based on their
preference, rather than on the anatomy with which they were born.
Stonestreet said he believes the amendment could be evidence of a
movement in the right direction but isn’t convinced it’s a long-term
solution.
“The question is why we’re having this conversation,” he said. “Society
has found gender diversity to be important to recognize, but when
they’ve gotten the application of those things wrong, it hasn’t gone
well for people.”
Courtesy: WORLD News Service
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