Politics
State of the Union: A group of female athletes surrounded the president as he signed the executive order.
President Donald Trump signed an executive order Wednesday banning biological males from competing in women’s sports regardless of what gender they identify with.
The order declares it U.S. policy to rescind funding from educational programs “that deprive women and girls of fair athletic opportunities, which results in the endangerment, humiliation, and silencing of women and girls and deprives them of privacy.”
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It also directs the U.S. government to oppose men’s participation in women’s sports “more broadly.”
A large group of young female athletes surrounded the president as he signed the order. Many commentators found the resulting photographs striking. “Congratulations to every single person on the left who’s been campaigning to destroy women’s and girl’s rights,” said author J.K. Rowling, who is critical of the trans movement. “Without you, there’d be no images like this.”
In his first weeks as president, Trump has signed other executive orders that pertain to sex and gender. He directed the executive branch to adhere to the traditional definition of sex, banned people with gender dysphoria from the military, and cut off funding for sex-change medical procedures for minors, among other measures.