CONCORD, N.H. — Two significant lawsuits concerning transgender female athletes are set to be heard in federal court in New Hampshire on Thursday. One of the cases disputes a state law banning transgender students from participating in school sports teams that align with their gender identity, while the other revolves around the rights of parents to protest this participation.
The first lawsuit involves two transgender teenage girls: one who participated in soccer on the girls’ team during the fall season and another who is preparing to join the track team this winter. Earlier this year, a federal judge permitted these teens to try out for and compete on girls’ school sports teams while they challenge the Fairness in Women’s Sports Act, aiming to represent all transgender students in New Hampshire.
This Act, which was enacted by Governor Chris Sununu in July, prohibits transgender athletes from grades 5 through 12 from joining teams that match their gender identity. Instead, schools are mandated to categorize all sports teams as either girls, boys, or coed, with eligibility criteria based on students’ birth certificates or other documentation.
Governor Sununu has argued that this law is vital for maintaining fairness and safety in women’s sports by preserving the integrity and competitive balance in athletic events. Approximately half of U.S. states have introduced comparable regulations.
In the second case, the judge will hear the defense from officials of the Bow school district regarding their prohibition against parents wearing pink wristbands emblazoned with “XX” — symbolizing female chromosomes — at a girls’ high school soccer match in September. This restriction led to a lawsuit filed against the district by the parents.
Notably, one of the transgender girls involved in the legal challenge was playing for the opposing team during that match. The district issued no-trespass orders against two parents because they wore the wristbands, although these orders have since lapsed.
The judge will also hear from the parents, who assert that their First Amendment rights were violated, and they are seeking a court order to prevent the school district from enforcing such limitations in the future. They expressed their intention to continue wearing the wristbands at various school events — like swim meets and cross country competitions — throughout this academic year and in the years ahead.
In response, school district officials maintained that their actions were appropriate and necessary for safeguarding Parker Tirrell from potential intimidation and harassment during the game. They added that the district imposed reasonable sanctions against the two parents for actions they recognized as a violation of school policies regarding athletic events.