Kendall Watson
Susan Schwarz
Elements of Psychology
30 March 2017
The Social Aspect of Transgender Athletes in Youth Sports
The role of transgender athletes has become a prominent social issue. This is largely due to 1976 Olympic Decathlon Gold Medalist, Caitlyn Jenner’s high-profile transition. In July 2015, Jenner was awarded the “Arthur Ashe Courage Award” at the ESPYs. She asked that transgender youth be “…given the chance to play sports as who they really are…” and encouraged her peers in the sports world to make this one of their subjects of discussion (Kirkpatrick). High school, middle school, and even some elementary school students are identifying as transgender and looking to participate in school activities as the gender with …show more content…
She feels that Jenner’s speech was a prominent moment that has helped the broader movement of transgender athletes. She points out that it is not typically the transgender boy athletes (female that identify as a male) that cause the largest concern, but instead, that transgender female athletes (male that identify as female), have an unfair advantage over non-transgender female athletes. One example is Mac, a 12 year old in Washington State that wanted to play on the school boys’ basketball team. His school supported his effort and his coach even applauded him for persevering despite having to work harder to keep up physically. In this situation the coaches and his family felt that basketball provided an outlet, a break from the bullying, and an opportunity to be part of the team. On the flip side, others have pointed out that in some circumstances, relaxing the rules can cause abuse of the system. Republican Presidential Candidate, Mike Huckabee, sarcastically touched on this earlier in the year, saying, "I wish that someone told me that when I was in high school that I could have felt like a woman when it came time to take showers in P.E. I'm pretty sure that I would have found my feminine side and said, 'Coach, I think I'd rather shower with the girls …show more content…
Just this past February, Mack Beggs, won the Texas girl’s state wrestling championship. Beggs, however, is a 17 year old who is transitioning from male to female. As a male athlete myself, my observation is that most of the time, high school male athletes are faster and stronger than females. I do not say this as criticism, I respect female athletes. They are competitive, hardworking and talented. I would compare the differences of female to male to that of a freshman student athlete and a senior student athlete. There are often noticeable differences in physic, muscle mass, height and weight. I personally struggle less with a female who wants to participate on an all-male team. We see this often where there is not an opportunity for a girl to play a particular sport. In those situations, as long as issues addressing modesty are handled, I find it acceptable. When any male, even one who completely identifies as a female, chooses to join an all girls’ team, I feel they will have a physical advantage. An exception might be a transgender female athlete who took hormones, or had their hormones blocked before their body began changing as a
Susan Schwarz
Elements of Psychology
30 March 2017
The Social Aspect of Transgender Athletes in Youth Sports
The role of transgender athletes has become a prominent social issue. This is largely due to 1976 Olympic Decathlon Gold Medalist, Caitlyn Jenner’s high-profile transition. In July 2015, Jenner was awarded the “Arthur Ashe Courage Award” at the ESPYs. She asked that transgender youth be “…given the chance to play sports as who they really are…” and encouraged her peers in the sports world to make this one of their subjects of discussion (Kirkpatrick). High school, middle school, and even some elementary school students are identifying as transgender and looking to participate in school activities as the gender with …show more content…
She feels that Jenner’s speech was a prominent moment that has helped the broader movement of transgender athletes. She points out that it is not typically the transgender boy athletes (female that identify as a male) that cause the largest concern, but instead, that transgender female athletes (male that identify as female), have an unfair advantage over non-transgender female athletes. One example is Mac, a 12 year old in Washington State that wanted to play on the school boys’ basketball team. His school supported his effort and his coach even applauded him for persevering despite having to work harder to keep up physically. In this situation the coaches and his family felt that basketball provided an outlet, a break from the bullying, and an opportunity to be part of the team. On the flip side, others have pointed out that in some circumstances, relaxing the rules can cause abuse of the system. Republican Presidential Candidate, Mike Huckabee, sarcastically touched on this earlier in the year, saying, "I wish that someone told me that when I was in high school that I could have felt like a woman when it came time to take showers in P.E. I'm pretty sure that I would have found my feminine side and said, 'Coach, I think I'd rather shower with the girls …show more content…
Just this past February, Mack Beggs, won the Texas girl’s state wrestling championship. Beggs, however, is a 17 year old who is transitioning from male to female. As a male athlete myself, my observation is that most of the time, high school male athletes are faster and stronger than females. I do not say this as criticism, I respect female athletes. They are competitive, hardworking and talented. I would compare the differences of female to male to that of a freshman student athlete and a senior student athlete. There are often noticeable differences in physic, muscle mass, height and weight. I personally struggle less with a female who wants to participate on an all-male team. We see this often where there is not an opportunity for a girl to play a particular sport. In those situations, as long as issues addressing modesty are handled, I find it acceptable. When any male, even one who completely identifies as a female, chooses to join an all girls’ team, I feel they will have a physical advantage. An exception might be a transgender female athlete who took hormones, or had their hormones blocked before their body began changing as a