False information being spread in case of transgender athlete
I am writing in response to the Naperville Sun article, “Meeting packed with supporters/opponents of trans student athletes,” published Wednesday, June 4. I support transgender people and our top-ranked Naperville public schools. I thank Naperville schools for their continued support of all children.
Hours of comments at the two recent Naperville District 203 School Board meetings would have been unnecessary if not for Awake Illinois, an anti-LGBTQ+ hate group, exposing the face and details about a transgender child.
The majority of attendees supported transgender rights. Anti-transgender speakers made numerous false claims, including:
1. Some said the child involved is a boy. False. Transgender girls are not boys. The repeated phrase of “boys in girls’ sports” is a slur, not a fact.
2. No child in Naperville District 203 has “pretended to be a girl” to win at sports.
3. No transgender females have changed or showered in locker rooms with cisgender girls. Gender accommodations are discussed among the student, their family and the school.
4. No federal law supersedes state law in this sports competition case.
5. There is no such thing as Title IX Month nor has it replaced Pride Month. An executive order creating Title IX Month has no legal standing.
Title IX protects all students from discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Awake used an isolated case to discriminate, marginalize, intimidate and erase transgender people and to call for defunding public schools.
Naperville District 203 Policy 7:10 explicitly states that equal education and extra-curricular opportunities shall be available for all students regardless of gender identity. Policy 7:20 states that harassment of students is prohibited based on gender identity.
The relentless bullying of transgender people by the current Trump administration and hate groups like Awake Illinois contributes to the distress of trans children, their families and allies. Awake and MAGA extremists try to foment fear of transgender people and destroy public schools, whose mission is to educate all students, give all students equal opportunities, and make all students feel valued and welcomed.
Transgender athletes in sports warrant study by the scientific community. Decisions must not be dictated by Christian nationalists or others who hate transgender people, deny their existence or aim to erode their rights. Lies about trans kids must not be used to try to defund public schools.
Being transgender is not an ideology, but one of many natural ways to be. Transgender people want to live their lives just like everyone else.
Karen V. Peck, Naperville
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