THE STATE OF GEORGIA. TOMORROW’S HEARING STARTS AT ONE P.M. YOU WILL BE ABLE TO WATCH LIVE HERE
ON LOCAL 4 AND
CLICKONDETROIT.COM. THERE’S A
NEW TWIST IN THE DEBATE OVER IF
AND HOW TRANSGENDER ATHLETES
SHOULD BE ABLE TO COMPETE IN
WOMEN’S COMPETITIONS. TINA THE
WORLD GOVERNING BODY OF SWIMMING
, HAS APPROVED A NEW LIST OF
RULES. IT WILL REQUIRE TRANS
SWIMMERS TO HAVE COMPLETED THEIR
TRANSITION BY AGE 12 TO BE
ELIGIBLE FOR COMPETITIONS,
INCLUDING THE OLYMPICS. ATHLETES
WOULD ALSO HAVE TO PROVE THEY
HAVE CONTINUOUSLY SUPPRESSED
TESTOSTERONE LEVELS SINCE THEIR
TRANSITION TO ALSO ANNOUNCED A
NEW WORKING GROUP TO TAKE A LOOK
AT CREATING A NEW OPEN CATEGORY
FOR TRANS WOMEN. IN SOME EVENTS
, THE NEW RULES DO NOT IMPACT
AND AH ATHLETES, TUTMAN HAS BEEN
DIGGING INTO THIS VERY COMPLEX
ISSUE, PAULA KAREN. IT IS SO
COMPLEX AND SO DEEPLY CHARGED ON
THE DEEP END OF THE ISSUE. WE’RE
TALKING ABOUT SOMETHING THAT IS
HIGHLY CHARGED POLITICALLY AS
WELL AS EMOTIONALLY AND SOCIALLY
. BUT WHAT HE HAS DONE, IT IS
DRAWN A LINE IN THE SCIENTIFIC
SAND, BASICALLY SAYING WHEN BOYS
START GOING THROUGH PUBERTY AND
THEY START BECOMING MEN. THEY
ARE PHYSIOLOGICALLY BY DESIGN,
GIVEN AN ADVANTAGE OVER WOMEN,
AND THAT’S WHAT THIS IS ABOUT.
COACH BILL COPELAND HAS BEEN A
SWIM COACH FOR ONE YEAR SHY OF
FIVE FULL DECADES. I’VE COACHED
AT THE JUNIOR HIGH HIGH SCHOOL
COLLEGE. AND CLUB LEVELS. MOST
RECENT GIG COACH OF THE
DELPHINUS SWIM CLUB IN LANSING
UNTIL COVID SHUT THE PROGRAM
DOWN. I ABSOLUTELY SUPPORT LGBT
Q RIGHTS AND CHOICES. THE DEAL
IS I DRAW THE LINE WHEN SOMEONE
WHO WAS BORN MALE CHOOSES TO
COMPETE WITH FEMALES AFTER
PUBERTY, REFERRING TO THE
DECISION MADE BY TINA OVER THE
WEEKEND. IT’S THE WORLD’S
GOVERNING BODY FOR SWIMMING,
WHICH IS RULED TRANSGENDER WOMEN
ARE INELIGIBLE TO COMPETE. IN
COMPETITIVE SWIMMING IF THEY DID
NOT TRANSITION PRIOR TO AGE 12
AND THE ONSET OF PUBERTY. AMANDA
BRANCH, A TRANSGENDER WOMAN
LIVING IN DETROIT, IS HURT BY
THE DECISION, BELIEVING IT
THROWS MORE FIRE ONTO AN ALREADY
PAINFULLY BURNING ISSUE FOR
TRANSGENDERS. THIS HAS BEEN
SPREADING LIKE WILDFIRE
THROUGHOUT EVERYWHERE PEOPLE
HAVE DISCOURSE ABOUT THIS AND
ALL THESE PEOPLE. ARE ANGRY AND
TREATING IT AS IF THESE TRANS
WOMEN ARE VILLAGE. NOBODY WOULD
WISH TO GO THROUGH THE KIND OF
THINGS THAT TRANS PEOPLE GO
THROUGH. NOBODY WOULD BE LIKE,
SURE, I WANT A GOLD MEDAL, SO
I’M JUST GOING TO GO THROUGH ALL
OF THIS EIGHT AND ALL THESE
MEDICAL THINGS. COPELAND AND
FIONA SAY THIS IS NOT ABOUT
EMOTION. IT IS ABOUT SCIENCE
PERIOD BECAUSE IT’S SUCH A
VOLATILE ISSUE. THIS ONE PARENT
WHO STARTED A METRO DETROIT SWIM
CLUB AND HAS TWO CHILDREN WHO
PARTICIPATED IN COMPETITIVE
SWIMMING FOR YEARS. I WANTED TO
TELL HIS STORY, BUT DIDN’T WANT
TO GO ON CAMERA SIMPLY BECAUSE
HE FELT HIS OPINION WOULD BE
MISCONSTRUED AS HATE SPEECH,
WHICH HE SAYS INDEFINITELY IS
NOT THE FIRST FIVE YEARS OF
SWIMMING. SHE WOULD BEAT HIM ALL
THE TIME, AND IT WASN’T UNTIL
SHE HIT PUBERTY. THEY ARE, UM HE
ACTUALLY JUST ANNIHILATED HER
AND PETE HURT EITHER TIMES BY
PROBABLY 4 30 TO 40 SECONDS IN A
IN A IN A COURSE SWIMMING. IT’S
ALL IT’S ALL PHYSICAL. THE
TALLER YOU ARE THE ONE ARE
BUILDING THAT YOU HAVE THE BEST
OF YOU SWIM IN THE WATER. IT’S
JUST IT’S JUST THAT’S THE WAY IT
IS. YEAH YOU KNOW, AND ALSO
KAREN, I REALLY WANT TO TELL YOU
HOW DIFFICULT IT WAS TO EVEN GET
ALL OF THESE SIDES OF THE STORY
BECAUSE IT IS SO HIGHLY CHARGED
AND A LOT OF PEOPLE IF THEY
DISAGREED, OR IF THEY AGREED
WITH THIS DECISION THEY FELT
LIKE IT WOULD BE CONSIDERED.
HATE SPEECH OR THAT THEY WEREN’T
ALLIES OR IN SOME WAY THEY WERE
TRYING TO MAKE PEOPLE WRONG, AND
THAT IN ITSELF STOPS THE ABILITY
TO EVEN HAVE A CONVERSATION AND
OPEN CONVERSATION ABOUT THIS.
IT’S THE CONVERSATION THAT IS SO
IMPORTANT. WE APPRECIATE YOUR