FEMALE ATHLETES ARE CAN FEEDING
WITH BIOLOGICAL MEN WHO IDENTIFY
AS WOMEN, MY NEXT GUEST ARE
SOUNDING THE ALARM AND SAYING
THEY ARE TAKING STEPS TO PROTECT
WOMEN’S RIGHTS.
JOINING ME NOW, PRESIDENT OF THE
INDEPENDENT WOMEN’S FORUM IN
RILEY GAINES, FORMER UNIVERSITY
OF KENTUCKY SWIMMER WHO COMPETED
AGAINST TRANSGENDER ATHLETE LEAH
THOMAS BERRY THANK YOU FOR BEING
HERE.
CARRIE, ARE THESE SHIFTING
DEFINITIONS FACILITATING DISCRIMINATION AGAINST
DISCRIMINATION AGAINST
BIOLOGICAL WOMEN?
>> ABSOLUTELY IT REALLY IS
IMPORTANT WHEN YOU’RE TALKING
ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF LANGUAGE
, PARTICULARLY WHEN IT
COMES TO MATTERS OF LAW, THE
WORD WOMAN IS USED MORE THAN 200
TIMES IN THE VIOLENCE AGAINST
WOMEN ACT ALONE AND IT REALLY
MATTERS IF WE MATTER WHAT THESE
WORDS ARE.
WOMEN HAVE HAD TO FIGHT HARD TO
HAVE EQUAL OPPORTUNITY NOT JUST
IN SPORTS, BUT EQUAL PROTECTION
WHEN IT COMES TO THE WORKPLACES
AND LOTS OF PLACES.
IT IS REALLY A PROBLEM IF WE ARE
SUDDENLY ERODING JUST THIS WORD
WOMAN AND THIS COMMON
UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT IT MEANS
TO BE EQUAL AND HAVE EQUAL
OPPORTUNITY.
>> ED TRANS ACTIVISTS RESPONDED
TO YOUR EFFORTS TELLING POLITICO
THAT THIS TREND OF TRYING TO
DEFINE GENDER IN IS NOT A NEW
ONE.
WITH NEW NOW IS THAT THEY ARE
PUSHING OR TRYING TO PUSH IT IN
A LEGAL SENSE, THESE WOMEN’S
RIGHTS BILLS ARE NOT ABOUT
WOMEN’S RIGHTS, PEOPLE DEFINE
WOMEN IN DIFFERENT WAYS.
CARRIE, YOUR RESPONSE OF WHAT
YOU ARE TRYING TO DO IN THE
STATE LEGISLATURES?
GET RID TRYING TO MAKE SURE WE
HAVE A COMMON LANGUAGE TO TALK
ABOUT SO WE ARE PROMOTING
SOMETHING CALLED THE WOMEN’S
BILL OF RIGHTS AND ALL THIS
WOULD DO IS MAKE SURE THAT WE
KNOW WHAT THE WORD WOMAN IS TO
ACTUALLY DEFINE IT AND DEFINE IT
AS BASED IN BIOLOGY SO THAT WE
KNOW WHAT THEY WERE MEANT WORD
FEMALE IS, MAIL, MEN, WOMEN, SO
WE KNOW THE LAWS THAT ARE ON THE
BOOKS THAT WE ARE HAVING A
COMMON LANGUAGE AND IF SOMEBODY
WANTS TO, IF THERE IS
POLICYMAKERS OUT THERE WHO WANT
TO INCLUDE MEAL BODIED PEOPLE
WHO IDENTIFY IS TRENDS OR
IDENTIFY AS WOMEN, THEY CAN DO
THAT, BUT THEY HAVE TO DO IT
WITH DIFFERENT LANGUAGE WE CAN’T
REDEFINE THE WOMAN WORD WOMAN TO
BE MEANINGLESS TO SAY HEY, WHO
CARES IT’S WHATEVER YOU THINK IT
IS AND ANYBODY WHO WANTS TO USE
THE WORD WOMAN BECOMES A WOMAN,
THAT’S NOT FAIR TO WOMEN IT’S
NOT FAIR TO WOMEN WHO WANT TO
HAVE SAFE SPACES AND EQUAL
OPPORTUNITY.
>> RIGHTLY, YOU WERE A
COMPETITIVE SWIMMER.
DO WOMEN HAVE EQUAL ACCESS TO
SPORTS WHEN THE COURTS AND THE
GOVERNMENT ARE FORCING THEM TO
COMPETE WITH BIOLOGICAL MEN AS
YOU DID?
>> ABSOLUTELY NOT.
THIS IS TAKING US BACK TO THE
1970s TO BEFORE TITLE IX, AND
THAT’S WHAT I THINK IS THE LEFT
IS NOT UNDERSTANDING.
THEY THINK THIS IS PROGRESSIVE,
THEY THINK WERE MOVING IN A
FORWARD DIRECTION, BUT THIS IS
TAKING US BACK HALF A CENTURY.
IT’S NOT MOVING ANYTHING FORWARD
IT’S TAKING US BACKWARDS FOR IT.
>> YOU TIED LEAH THOMAS FOR
FIRST PLACE IN NCAA DIVISION I
CHAMPIONSHIP.
HERE IS HOW LEAH REACTED.
>> HOW DOES THAT MAKE YOU FEEL
WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT THE FACT
THAT YOU’RE THE FIRST
TRANSGENDER PERSON TO EVER WIN A
DIVISION I CHAMPIONSHIP?
>> I AM VERY HUMBLED AND HONORED
TO HOLD THAT TITLE, AND I CAN
ONLY HOPE THAT I AM ABLE TO GIVE
OTHER TRANS PEOPLE THE
INSPIRATION AND MOTIVATION I WAS
GIVEN.
>> RILEY, YOU’RE THOUGHTS WHEN
YOU.
YOU MATCHED A BIOLOGICAL MAN
WITH GREATER WON ONE CAPACITY
AND UPPER BODY STRENGTH AND LEAH
WANTS TO ENCOURAGE MORE
TRANSGENDER PEOPLE TO JUMP IN
THE POOL.
>> TO BE HEARING THAT, ALL I
HEAR IS SELFISHNESS.
I HEAR SELF OF LACK AWARENESS
AND OTHER DISRESPECT TOWARDS
WOMEN, WOMEN WHO HAVE DEDICATED
THEIR ENTIRE LIVES TO THEIR
SPORTS, NOT JUST ONE YEAR AFTER
THE YEAR BEFORE BREAK IT IN THE
FIVE HUNDREDS AND SIX HUNDREDS
AS BIOLOGICAL MALE AND THAT’S
WHAT THIS WAS.
JUST OFF SHEERS STATISTICS,
NOTHING OPINIONATED ABOUT THIS,
LEAH THOMAS, THE YEAR BEFORE WAS
RANKED IN THE FIVE HUNDREDS AT
BEST, THAT NEXT YEAR, A YEAR
LATER, WINNING AT NATIONAL TITLE
, BEING THE FASTEST FEMALE
AND THE COUNTRY IN THEN BEING
NOMINATED FOR NCAA WOMAN OF THE
YEAR.
NOTHING ABOUT WHAT I JUST SAID
IS AN OPINION.
IF IT FRUSTRATE SOMEONE OR MAKE
SOMEONE UPSET, I THINK THAT
SPEAKS VOLUMES.
>> THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION
SEEKING TO EXPAND SEXUAL
PROTECTION FOR GENDER IDENTITIES
, HERE IS AN EXAMPLE
OF WHAT THEY MIGHT BE THINKING.
THIS COMPREHENSIVE IDENTITY
DOESN’T APPEAR IN ALL PLACES IN
WOMEN’S HEALTH MAGAZINE, AND
ANATOMICAL SIX, SIX GENDER,
ENTER GENDER EXPENSIVE, GENDER
VOID, OMNI GENDER, TO SPIRIT.
NOW, WE’LL DEFINING WOMEN AND
MEN EVEN HOPE IT ALONG WHEN YOU
HAVE SO MANY OF THESE GENDER
ITERATIONS BEING CREATED EVERY
DAY AND THE CULTURE AT LARGE?
>> I THINK IT WILL.
AT THINK IT’S IMPORTANT WE GET
BACK TO HAVING COMMON LANGUAGE
IN YOUR RIGHT, IT IS SHOCKING TO
SEE ALL THESE NEW TERMINOLOGIES
AND CATEGORIES COMING ONLINE
RIGHT THE MOST IMPORTANT THING
IS TO NOT TAKE OUR EYE OFF THE
BALL, WHEN IT COMES TO NEED TO
HAVE A COMMON LANGUAGE AND IT
COMES TO TERMS LIKE WOMEN WE
NEED TO KNOW WHAT WE’RE TALKING
ABOUT AND KNOW WHEN WE TALK
ABOUT IT AND LOCK OF IT WE CAN’T
HAVE SOMEBODY ERASE THAT.
I DO THINK THAT IS AN IMPORTANT
STEP FORWARD.
THAT’S WHAT WE ARE WORKING AT
THE FEDERAL LEVEL TO MAKE SURE
THAT THE FEDERAL LAWS RECOGNIZE
THIS, BUT ALSO ACROSS THE STATES
.
I THINK MOST PEOPLE SAVE YOU
RIGHT, THIS ISN’T A LEFT OR
RIGHT ISSUE.
WE HAVE WOMEN THAT WE WORK WITH
IT SAY THIS IS RIDICULOUS WE
SHOULDN’T HAVE BIOLOGICAL MEN
STEALING OUR SPOTS WHEN IT COMES
TO TEAMS, THEY SHOULDN’T BE
TAKEN WOMEN’S PHYSICIANS WHEN IT
COMES TO EDUCATIONAL FACILITIES
THEY SHOULDN’T BE THREATENING
WOMEN IN PRISONS WHICH IS
OBVIOUSLY HAPPENING EVERY DAY.
THIS IS A BIG PROBLEM BUT WE CAN