Should trans athletes have their own sports division?

Curtice (No)

Today's society seems bent on championing and defending transgender athletes in competition, despite women’s rights to fair competition. Lea Thomas, the trans swimmer at Penn, became a lightning rod for the debate. Yet, the truth remains—nobody is truly trans. One may believe they are not their birth sex, nonbinary, a cat, whatever it may be, but that does not make it so. People are either born male or female, and—like one's race and age—no amount of wardrobe, name, pronoun, or surgical changes will alter one's DNA and genetics. Sex change remains physically impossible. Therefore, athletes should compete according to their biology—males against males, females against females—no matter how they identify.

Biology creates certain physical advantages for males and disadvantages for females regarding physical competition. That isn't sexist, nor is it hate—it's science.   

Creating a separate trans category further divides society and promotes the idea that people can be a category other than simply male and female. 

Likewise, it is unclear if this will require two trans divisions; one for males who identify as females and females who identify as males. What if a third nonbinary category arises? There is a push for more than just trans and nonbinary genders to be accepted, so should this be reflected in sports as well? It remains unclear and nebulous. 

If this logic is pushed out to its farthest extreme, does this mean we should further segment groups? Should left-handed athletes only compete against other left-handed athletes? Should the NBA add a six-foot and under division? It can be taken to the absurd where everyone is segmented and divided so much that each athlete is a group unto themselves and, therefore, can't compete against anyone else. 

Luke (Yes)

Regardless of one's stance on transgender people or the ideology behind the movement, the US is founded upon the principle of equal opportunity. This principle applies to every person, regardless of their 'race, color, religion or creed, national origin or ancestry, sex, age, physical or mental disability, veteran status, genetic information, and citizenship.' However, this principle cuts both ways. On the one hand, it is unfair for biological males to compete against biological females, an issue made clear by the existence of male and female sports divisions. On the other hand, it is unfair to those who are transgender to have no option at all to play sports merely because of their lawful personal decisions. 

One potential solution to this problem is to create separate transgender sports divisions. This solution would allow transgender athletes to compete in sports without endangering biological females who have the right to fair competition. This means allowing women the space not to compete against those born male, whose bodies have retained 'all the physiological advantages of having developed testosterone-driven strength, stamina and physique.' This would likewise allow for transgender-specific guidelines and regulations to materialize. Similar to how various weight classes exist in boxing, a transgender sports division could distinguish between when an athlete transitioned, their current state of transition, and their testosterone levels while also considering their biological/physiological makeup. 

Addressing the problem in an equitable way by allowing trans athletes to still compete within sports by having their own division would enable the country to focus on solving other critically important issues and could potentially provide a bridge across the political divide that has advanced within the country in the last decade or so. It's a win-win.