US Supreme Court to review bans on transgender athletes in female sports

The US Supreme Court has agreed to review whether state laws can ban transgender athletes from competing in women's and girls' sports. This comes after the conservative majority court upheld a Tennessee law that bans gender transition care for young people, which some say is a blow to transgender rights in the US. The case involves Idaho and West Virginia, where two transgender students won injunctions to continue competing. The Supreme Court will review the cases of Becky Pepper-Jackson, 15, and Lindsay Hecox, 24, who challenged state bans as discriminatory. Idaho was the first state to pass a law prohibiting transgender athletes from competing in women's sports, with other states following suit. The Supreme Court's ruling could have significant implications nationwide.

State lawmaker Barbara Ehardt, who introduced the Idaho law, aimed to ensure fairness in sports. However, courts found the law violated constitutional rights and failed to promote equality for women athletes. West Virginia Attorney General John McCuskey supported the court's intervention, emphasizing the importance of preserving women's sports. The ACLU, representing the athletes, argued against the discriminatory laws, stating that excluding transgender kids from sports could harm all youth. The Supreme Court will hear the challenges in its next term, impacting states with similar bans. President Donald Trump's executive order earlier this year aimed to ban transgender women and girls from female sports teams.

According to the source: BBC.