The Associated Students of Madison Equity and Inclusion Committee encouraged students to reach out to Wisconsin government leaders on Thursday, as part of their efforts to support transgender athletes.
Last week, ASM unanimously passed legislation condemning Wisconsin Assembly Bill 195 and Assembly Bill 196, known as the “‘Protecting Women in Sports Act” which seeks to ban transgender women and girls from participating in women’s sports teams.
Diversity Engagement Coordinator Crystal Zhao stressed the importance of ASM’s stance as the organization does not tolerate any forms of discrimination.
“Our work as an organization is to benefit students, so it is crucial for us to voice our opposition against the exclusion of trans athletes in sports or any other form of discrimination against the LGBTQI+ community,” said Zhao.
Zhao maintains that there is no evidence that transgender women outcompete cisgender women in athletics.
“Trans girls and women deserve to play on women’s teams, and they do not threaten women’s sports,” said Zhao. “The exclusion of trans women threatens women’s sports instead of ‘protecting them’ because it demands rampant policing of women’s bodies.”
Students opposed to the legislation should contact their Wisconsin representative and Governor Tony Evers in support of transgender athletes in Wisconsin, said Zhao.
“Students can email and call their representative to urge them to vote against Assembly Bill 195 and 106,” said Zhao. “They can also support individual trans athletes through social media platforms and donations.”
If the “Protecting Women in Sports Act” passes, the ASM legislation demands that Governor Evers veto the act. ASM also insists that the University of Wisconsin System and UW-Madison “immediately” challenge the act if it is signed into law.
“Individuals should listen to and provide space for transgender people’s voices to be heard on UW-Madison campus and beyond,” emphasized Zhao.
Sophia Vento is the former editor-in-chief of The Daily Cardinal. She previously served as the college news editor. She has covered breaking campus, city, state and sports news, and written in-depth stories about health, culture and education. Any newsroom would be lucky to have Sophia on staff. Follow her on Twitter at @sophiasvento.
