After the vote, the state regulations now require the Alaska School Activities Association to only allow girls to participate in female sports.
Lorri van Diest presented the first non-binding Resolution related to this issue in March, saying that it was impossible to balance fairness and inclusion because of differences in the physiology of men and women.
She said: “I will vote for the regulation amendment as I am a member of a group that prioritizes the competitive fairness and the safety of high school girls athletes.”
She cited a number of examples to prove men’s superiority in sports over women.
In 2016, Alaska’s “transgender athlete” Nattaphon, born male, Nattaphon, from Haines High School competed in girls’ track events but did not score higher than third.
The student representative of the Board was not happy with what he heard:
Student Felix Myers disagreed. According to him, the group was discussing men taking part in women’s sports instead of trans women.
Bill Strickland, from ASAA, confirmed that there hasn’t been a problem with fairness for transgender students.
“When I consider helping to protect girls’ sports in Alaska, there are a number of issues that can be addressed,” Myers stated.
He suggested that the board educate coaches on eating disorders, and consider funding equality for travel and equipment in order to support girls’ sports.
He said that he did not believe that trans girls would join sports teams in order to gain unfair advantages.
Riley Gaines wants to say something. The bullying in her case and others has been quite the opposite. Anyone who has taken Biology 101 knows that there are fairness issues here. Even prepubescent boys enjoy a distinct advantage when it comes to bone structure and muscular density, which gives them measurable advantages.
The opposition has not come from just the student representative. While the Alaska Board of Education ordered the ASAA last year to amend its bylaws, the AASA refused to comply until the State Education Department voted on an official amendment to state regulations that govern education. With the vote, AASA must now implement the policy banning boys from girls’ teams.
Alaska will join Kansas, Wyoming, and North Dakota in banning boys’ participation in girls’ sports in 2023. The Biden administration has proposed a federal regulation allowing local school boards to act at their discretion but does not support an outright ban on boys’ participation in girls’ sports.
