The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) made a big decision this week, ruling that transgender women—or those who identify as female but were assigned male at birth—won’t be able to compete in its collegiate women’s sports anymore as from 1 August 2024, according to CBS Sports.
Leading the pack with 249 small, mostly private colleges and around 83,000 student athletes, NAIA seems to be the first to put this rule in place among collegiate athletic associations.
NAIA president Jim Carr explained to CBS Sports, “We know there are a lot of different opinions out there… For us, we believed our first responsibility was to create fairness and competition in the NAIA… We also think it aligns with the reasons Title IX was created. You’re allowed to have separate but equal opportunities for women to compete.”
The new policy doesn’t just affect transgender women; it also stops trans men—or those undergoing “masculinizing hormone therapy”—from playing on a women’s team. However, male sports remain open to all student athletes.
This decision came after a December survey showed broad support and a unanimous 20-to-0 vote from its Council of Presidents.
While this change doesn’t impact most colleges or universities, which fall under the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA), it’s sparked disappointment among LGBTQ+ advocacy groups.
“This is unacceptable and blatant discrimination that not only harms trans, nonbinary and intersex individuals, but limits the potential of all athletes,” said Shiwali Patel, senior counsel at the National Women’s Law Center, to ESPN. “It’s important to recognize that these discriminatory policies don’t enhance fairness in competition. Instead, they send a message of exclusion and reinforce dangerous stereotypes that harm all women.”
National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics’s decision has also sparked conversation amongst X users:
Main image: CTV News
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