The issue of men pretending to be women to compete against them has been heating up for a long time. Strong and brave women, like Riley Gaines and Paula Scanlan, have spoken out against it (often at risk of severe personal harm), but until recently, it was mostly just individual women athletes speaking out.
Well no more. On Oct. 5, the ENTIRE Roanoke College women's swim team held a press conference (and invited Gaines and Scanlan to join them) where they told their school and the NCAA, 'ENOUGH' after a man tried to join their team this year, with the full support of the school and NCAA. Take a look:
🚨 LIVE: The Roanoke College Women’s Swimming Team is calling on the NCAA to protect women’s spaces, privacy, safety, & opportunities! Hear from the brave female athletes who are speaking out for the first time in the fight to save women’s sports. https://t.co/AMIw1XujEj
— Independent Women's Forum (@IWF) October 5, 2023
If you have the time, it is well worth watching the entire 75-minute press conference. But here are some highlights:
'Our universities and institutions are gaslighting and emotionally blackmailing us to make us feel like the oppressors just for demanding fairness. There are so many tears and so many frustrated women in sports right now and too many aren’t visible. It shouldn’t have to take bravery or courage to speak up for the fair treatment of women and girls. And if leaders can’t bring themselves to do that, we need different leaders.'
-- Riley Gaines
'I never expected to be blindsided by a teammate from the men’s team who now wanted to compete against me and my fellow swimmers and shatter our records.'
-- Roanoke swimmer and co-captain Bailey Gallagher
'We felt helpless. Every time we tried to speak up about our feelings we were either shoved aside or expected to deal with all of our concerns ourselves. We felt completely ignored by our school — a place that is supposed to be our home away from home.'
-- Roanoke swimmer and co-captain Kate Pearson
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There is much more in the complete press conference. Horrific stories, but more importantly, tremendous courage from these women who stood together as a team and refused to accept the insanity being foisted on them.
The Roanoke women swimmers were met with resounding support from the highest echelons of government in Virginia.
In Virginia, we are committed to fairness in women’s sports. I stand with the Roanoke College Swimmers in their efforts to seek an even playing field. Their request is reasonable, it’s common sense. https://t.co/QDUwuL9KnW
— Governor Glenn Youngkin (@GovernorVA) October 5, 2023
I stand with female athletes at Roanoke College, and all across Virginia, who are fighting for the integrity of women’s sports.
— Jason Miyares (@JasonMiyaresVA) October 5, 2023
We cannot roll back Title IX in the name of false equity. https://t.co/JmjcegArjX
It doesn't get much better than the full-throated backing of the governor and attorney general in your state.
But the groundswell of support came from all over Twitter. Including, of course, Gaines herself, but also other prominent Virginia officials and candidates in the 2023 election.
Soooooo proud to stand with @RoanokeCollege women's swim team today as they held a press conference calling for the NCAA, their university, and lawmakers to implement policies to protect women's sports!!
— Riley Gaines (@Riley_Gaines_) October 5, 2023
How many more girls have to lose out on opportunities for us to say "NO"? pic.twitter.com/h7nRig99qK
The female swimmers of Roanoke College are bravely standing up to the @NCAA for trying to force them to share their sports teams and locker rooms with biological men.
— Kelsey Bolar (Harkness) (@kelseybolar) October 5, 2023
They deserve SO MUCH credit for their bravery in taking on this fight.👏 👏 👏 https://t.co/y3PlwLrC6I
Props to these Roanoke College swimmers in Virginia, women’s sports must be protected. 🏊♀️👏🏻 https://t.co/7xEWwwAgpT
— Macaulay Porter (@macaulayporter) October 5, 2023
As a father of 4 amazing young women (who are all swimmers) I am committed to ensuring equal opportunities for women and girls. They deserve fair competition! It is just plain common sense. I stand with the Roanoke College Women’s Swimming Team. https://t.co/OQW6ZZFUW5
— Bill Woolf (@Woolf4VA) October 6, 2023
We and the overwhelming majority of Virginians stand with the @RoanokeCollege Women’s Swimming team. https://t.co/J2pNmxauVi
— Log Cabin Republicans RVA (@LogCabinRVA) October 6, 2023
Go Roanoke College Women's Swimming Team! 👏
— House Committee on Education & the Workforce (@EdWorkforceCmte) October 5, 2023
These incredible women are standing up for women's sports. Enough is enough! https://t.co/7UgMJILfy1
Many users, in voicing their support, also commented about how just the conversation itself is crazy.
It’s complete insanity we’re even having this debate. What trans activists have done is nothing short of evil. They’re mutilating children & erasing women. Women should never have to compete against men. Anyone saying there’s no scientific proof that men have advantages is lying. https://t.co/kzWhh49Nro
— Sebastian Melmoth (@SebastianM1891) October 5, 2023
He (and many others) are right, but this is where we are. The only path now is to fight back, and the Roanoke College women's swim team has joined the ranks of female athletes who are doing just that.
Cowardice got us into this mess. And courage will get us out of it.
— Abigail Shrier (@AbigailShrier) October 5, 2023
This is the way forward. https://t.co/xHrG32A1YL
This is how it should be done. The whole team stands together. https://t.co/nARPXdo4of
— the Ginga (@SirGingaa) October 6, 2023
And that's the real importance of this press conference. It's not just one lone voice speaking out. It's the entire team, joined arm-in-arm, standing up and saying, 'NO. We are NOT participating in this madness anymore.'
Bravo to the Roanoke College women.
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