U.S. Supreme Court Stands Up for Women’s Sports

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by WILL FOLKS

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The U.S. supreme court upheld the right of states to protect the integrity of women’s sports this week – concluding laws passed in West Virginia and Idaho do not violate federal civil rights’ legislation.

“States may maintain women’s and girls’ sports for biological females,” justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote for the six-member majority of the court. “They may determine eligibility for women’s and girls’ sports based on biological sex.”

West Virginia passed a law in 2022 affirming “inherent differences between biological males and biological females,” noting that “biological males would displace females to a substantial extent if permitted to compete on teams designated for biological females.”

This seemingly common sense conclusion was challenged in federal court, though, and in April 2024 a three-judge panel on the U.S. fourth circuit court of appeals blocked the law.

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Now the highest court in the land has ruled the West Virginia law will stand… along with other state-level efforts to protect the sanctity of women’s sports, which has come under attack in recent years.

South Carolina joined West Virginia in its appeal of the fourth circuit ruling, with attorney general Alan Wilson – the Palmetto State’s newly minted Republican gubernatorial nominee – referring to it as “profoundly wrong.”

Needless to say, Wilson was thrilled with the high court’s decision overturning the fourth circuit’s “erroneous precedent.”

“I have strongly supported the Save Women’s Sports law in South Carolina to protect women’s sports in our state,” Wilson said in response to the court’s ruling. “This decision is a landmark in the fight to protect women and girls from the left’s woke assault.”

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Wilson frequently battled the administration of former president Joe Biden and Kamala Harris as they attempted to radically reorient Title IX, which was adopted in 1972 to prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex at any academic institution or within any education program which receives federal funding. Biden’s administration sought to redefine Title IX to include protections for men who identify as women – thereby inviting a wave of institutional discrimination against biological women.

One of Wilson’s former rivals in the race for governor, outgoing first district congresswoman Nancy Mace, was also among the most aggressive opponents of the Biden/Harris Title IX rewrite – receiving praise on the issue from president Donald Trump.

“For years, the radical Left told women to stay quiet while forcing men into their bathrooms, locker rooms, and sports to appease an ideology which denies basic biology,” Mace wrote on X. “Today, they lost.”

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RELATED | TRUMP RESTORES TITLE IX PROTECTIONS TO WOMEN

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“We helped lead this fight,” Mace continued, “pushing legislation to protect women’s spaces and stop men from taking what women have worked so hard to earn. This is about fairness. It’s about safety. It’s about common sense. And today, the Supreme Court got it right.”

The originator of the ‘Save Women’s Sports’ movement in South Carolina is former state representative Ashley Trantham, who filed legislation in April 2020 in response to the rising tide of wokeness in high school sports.

“South Carolina has a proud history of cultivating talented and successful female athletes,” Trantham said when she unveiled her bill more than six years ago. “For years, we have witnessed our daughters chase their dreams, set new records, and stand at the top of the championship podium in women’s sports. Women have worked way too hard for equality in sports and regressing is NOT an option!”

Trantham told us the court’s 6-3 margin was “a little sad” but she was “definitely grateful to have this pass.” She also noted the hypocrisy of the Palmetto State’s “Republican” establishment on the bill.

“If you remember my biggest obstacle was my own party so it’s laughable that the Republican Caucus is taking a victory lap,” she said. “Guess I should be grateful that they let a Freedom Caucus member have a win on their watch.”

Indeed… and now efforts to protect those dreams have been upheld by the highest court in the land.

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THE OPINION…

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR…

Will Folks is the founding editor of the news outlet you are currently reading. Prior to founding FITSNews, he served as press secretary to the governor of South Carolina. He lives in the Midlands region of the state with his wife and eight children.

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