A transgender middle school athlete won a shot put competition in West Virginia last week, as a slew of female competitors refused to throw and walked off the pitch in protest.
Becky Pepper-Jackson, a 13-year-old boy who identifies as a girl, took first place at the Harrison County Championships on Thursday by a three-foot margin, official records show.
The eighth grader finished with a 32-foot-9-inch throw, while the second-place finisher came in at 29 feet and six inches.
Most of the girls did attempt throws, but five brave girls protested the unfairness of a male invading their category by preparing like they were about to throw, then exiting the field.
🚨🚨FIVE middle school female athletes in West Virginia refuse to throw shot put against male, Becky Pepper-Jackson.
This comes just 2 days after the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals blocked the WV law that says you must compete in the category that matches your sex.
It's a… pic.twitter.com/RzMgh4jVRU
— Riley Gaines (@Riley_Gaines_) April 19, 2024
Women’s sports advocate Riley Gaines, who was forced to compete against male swimmer Lia Thomas in the 2022 NCAA Championships, praised the middle schoolers for taking a stand.
“It’s a sad day when 13-14yr old girls have to be the adults in the room, but I couldn’t be more inspired by and proud of these girls,” she wrote on X. “Enough is enough. The tide is turning!”
The courageous demonstration came just days after a federal appeals court overturned a West Virginia transgender sports ban, ruling that Pepper-Jackson cannot be banned from competing against girls in schools.
Pepper-Jackson, who has identified as a girl and taken puberty-blocking drugs since the third grade according to the Associated Press, shouldn’t be forced to play against boys, the court found.
Judge Toby Heytens wrote that giving the teen a “choice” between either quitting sports or playing with other males “is no real choice at all.”
“The defendants cannot expect that B.P.J. will countermand her social transition, her medical treatment, and all the work she has done with her schools, teachers, and coaches for nearly half her life by introducing herself to teammates, coaches, and even opponents as a boy,” Heytens wrote.
Biden-appointed Heytens and Obama-appointed Judge Pamela A. Harris outvoted the lone dissenter to rule that the law violates Title IX, which prohibits sex-based discrimination in schools.
West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey (R), who argued the case on behalf of the state, said he was “deeply disappointed” by the court’s decision.
“I will keep fighting to safeguard Title IX. We must keep working to protect women’s sports so that women’s safety is secured and girls have a truly fair playing field,” the attorney general said, according to NBC News. “We know the law is correct and will use every available tool to defend it.”
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