Parents and local residents expressed their outrage at a public school board meeting this week after a male student who identifies as the opposite sex was given a spot on a high school girls’ volleyball team, reigniting concerns about female students’ privacy rights and being forced to compete against male athletes.
Several parents spoke out against the policy of allowing boys to compete in girls’ sports during a District 211 school board meeting on Wednesday. The school district includes the cities of Palatine, Hoffman Estates and Schaumburg.
Although the Conant High School athlete at the center of the controversy is reportedly no longer on the girls’ volleyball team, according to ABC News affiliate WLS, the residents and parents who spoke highlighted how such policies impact girls in public schools.
One of the speakers, Sophia Steel, told the board that she played golf during her time as a District 211 student at Hoffman Estates High School, and raised concerns about fairness in girls’ sports.
“As a former D211 student and athlete, now a collegiate athlete, what I have seen here is heartbreaking,” Steel said. “High school sports are a place for athletes to truly flourish at their sport. Whether that’s them coming in as a freshman, they have four years to truly excel and to go play at the collegiate level just like I did.”
The former District 211 student argued that allowing men to claim spots on girls’ high school sports teams and compete against female athletes is discouraging them from participating in athletics and depriving them of opportunities to compete in college-level sports.
According to a claim by an anonymous commenter shared Sunday in a Facebook group called D211 Parents for Privacy, the male student at Conant High School had no previous experience playing volleyball before trying out for the girls’ team.
The commenter alleged that several female volleyball players had been cut after the male student made the team. In addition to competing on the same team as girls, the post claimed that the male student was also allowed to enter the girls’ locker room.
In response to the situation, one female coach reportedly quit coaching the girls’ volleyball team and is now coaching boys’ volleyball.
Karen Powers, the mother of a Hoffman Estates High School graduate, referenced the coach during her speech at the board meeting, commending the female coach for “standing firm on [her] morals and values.” The mother said she is “disgusted” that the district would allow a boy to compete on a girls’ team, saying that this endangers female athletes and deprives them of opportunities.
“As I look at the board in front of me, I see members with daughters of their own,” Powers stated. “And I ask you, would you want your daughter to compete against a boy who is 6’4″?”
“Would you be happy if a boy secured a spot on the team meant for your daughter?” she asked. Would you want your daughter to undress in front of him in the locker room? Would you want him to undress in front of her?”
The mother also referenced Payton McNabb in her speech to the board, asking the members how they would feel if one of their daughters were to experience what she had. The former North Carolina high school volleyball player suffered a severe head and neck injuries after she was struck by a ball that a trans-identifying athlete on the opposing team had spiked over the net.
“Boys are inherently stronger than girls,” Powers asserted. “That is a fact. If you disagree with this statement, please explain to me why we have boy sports and girl sports.”
One of the speakers who spoke in support of allowing trans-identifying athletes to compete on opposite-sex teams was Justin O’Rourke. The Palatine resident argued that McNabb’s case doesn’t justify preventing trans-identifying athletes from competing as the opposite sex, claiming that no one calls for banning female athletes from sports when they injure other girls.
“It seems that history repeats itself,” O’Rourke said. “In 1947, when black athletes like Jackie Robinson joined all white leagues, some players refused to play. After the 1954 ruling in Brown v. Board of Education, some white parents pulled their kids out of public schools rather than having them attend alongside black students.”
“And in the 1970s, some parents removed their sons from Little League Baseball when girls were first allowed to join.”
The man argued that the case against allowing male athletes to compete in women’s sports is not about safety, but “an unwillingness to share space and opportunity with people who aren’t like us.”
According to a Concerned Women for America report released last month, male athletes who identify as female have “stolen” over 1,900 gold medals from women and girls and won nearly $500,000 in prize money by competing on women’s teams.
Samantha Kamman is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: samantha.kamman@christianpost.com. Follow her on Twitter: @Samantha_Kamman
