Nothing woke America up to the realities of gender ideology quicker than the photo of Riley Gaines standing next to her National Championship opponent, a 6’1′ male towering over her with his broad shoulders and smoldering grin. You felt it in your bones – this isn’t right.
The moment sparked a nationwide campaign to try and convince everyday Americans that this feeling was not just instinct; it was internalized bigotry and evidence that there was noble, progressive work still to do. Only one problem. It was all a lie. And recent admissions show that not even the top Democratic leaders believed what they were selling.
Just five years ago, I was a freshman in college, testifying in my dorm room about a bill that stated men cannot compete on women’s sports teams. ‘Politics are crazy,’ I thought, ‘Why do I even need to testify on something so obvious?’
I quickly learned of my own naivety when the bill did not pass in my very conservative state. ‘This isn’t a real issue,’ they insisted while I, a female athlete who had previously competed against a man, sat in front of them. There was clearly much more to this problem than I realized.
When the spotlight on the issue grew, it was somehow immediately deemed partisan. The issue was linked to the Democrats’ pro-LGBTQIA+ position, which they had insisted was the civil rights issue of our time, and now it was squarely at odds with something plainly unjust. But they were in too deep.
At every turn, those who tried to find solutions to the problem of men in women’s sports, including traditionally far-left organizations like Women’s Liberation Front, found themselves up against the powerful political operatives of the Democratic Party. Though the ties between LGB and T were fading, the radical left insisted that to be pro-gay or pro-woman, you had to also stand for men in women’s sports. Democrats obliged.
In some ways, this makes sense. If the Democrats acknowledge that sex exists in sports, then what does this mean to other parts of their agenda that rely on sex-denying ideology? The crusade to abolish sex is one that spans decades, and they are not about to budge now. So, they doubled down, even redefining ‘sex’ as ‘gender identity’ wherever they could, including in landmark pro-woman legislation like Title IX, and they continued to label anything contrary as ‘extreme’ through the 2024 election.
Concerned Women for America LAC exit polling suggests this issue played an outsized role in the election, and the Democrats paid the price with a resounding loss in both chambers of the federal government and the White House. Voters did not buy the lie that their concerns were merely internalized bigotry. And at least some Democrats are finally ready to face the music and speak more openly about it.
The Democrats’ highest-ranking figure has finally addressed one of the biggest political flops of modern history, and while her confession is unsurprising, it should shake the party to its core.
In her recently released book about her presidential candidacy, former Vice President Kamala Harris admits that she, too, shares concerns: ‘I agree with the concerns expressed by parents and players that we have to take into account biological factors such as muscle mass and unfair student athletic advantage when we determine who plays on which teams, especially in contact sports.’
But she added, ‘There was no way I was going to go against my very nature and turn on transgender people.’
And there it is. Tension unmasked. When reality collides with allegiance, the Democrats choose allegiance.
The highest leaders of the party know they were ignoring the real, reasonable and consequential concerns of millions of women. Abandoning women and their safety was a calculation worth making in their eyes.
Harris is not alone. California Gov. Gavin Newsom has publicly admitted that this is ‘an issue of fairness – it’s deeply unfair.’ Yet, his state is one of the worst offenders of women’s rights in this area.
On this Worldwide X/X Day (Real Women’s Day), the good news is that some party members are choosing reality and abandoning ship. Just a few weeks ago, 10 House Democrats voted, for the first time, for a National Defense Authorization Act amendment that would keep men from competing on women’s athletic teams at service academies. Just a few months ago, most of these same members refused to vote for a bill with similar protections.
As we hope this issue joins the parade of failed civil rights attacks of times gone by, voters and candidates alike should heed the warning. Never stand for a lie. Truth is our only sure foundation. Policy must be based on reality.
We know wrong when we see it. It is instinctive, and often clearly on display, like that photo of Riley Gaines’ medal being given to a male.