Voters in Washington and Colorado have approved ballot measures requiring that school sports be divided by sex, a result that arrives after more than a year of public confrontations, harassment and intimidation directed at advocates who pushed for the policy.
Washington’s Initiative 638 and Colorado’s Proposition 134 both passed, meaning two states generally considered reliably Democratic will now enforce separate boys’ and girls’ sports categories. Opponents of Colorado’s measure spent heavily to defeat it, outspending supporters nearly 18 to 1 — $4.9 million against roughly $270,000 — and still lost.
The votes cap a stretch in which people who spoke publicly in favor of female-only sports categories say they faced repeated hostility, sometimes violent, at public events.
A pattern of confrontations
In July, Washington high school student Ahnaleigh Wilson attended a rally in Seattle supporting WNBA guard Sophie Cunningham at Climate Pledge Arena. Wilson was holding a sign reading “Thank You Sophie For Speaking Up For Girls!” when Seattle Storm co-owner Celeste Keaton approached her and began cursing at her, allegedly telling her, “You’re f—ing insane. I hope Jesus can forgive you.” Wilson was brought to tears.
Frances Staudt, another Washington student, said she has faced daily harassment at Tumwater High School since declining to play against a male athlete in a high school basketball game more than two years ago, including people telling her they hope she chokes, dies and goes to hell.
Former high school softball player Kendall Kotzmacher said that at a Cunningham rally in Minnesota earlier this year, a counterprotester told her she should have been aborted.
XX-XY Athletics founder Jennifer Sey shared video of herself and friends being escorted by security to the concourse at a Golden State Valkyries game last month in San Francisco, during which a woman reportedly told her to “f—ing kill yourself.”
The most physical incident took place at a Portland Thorns game two Fridays ago, when roughly 20 supporters of XX-XY Athletics unfurled a “Save Women’s Sports” banner. Thorns supporters began yelling and, according to witnesses, one woman was sent tumbling over two rows of seats while others were poked with flagpoles brought into the stadium. Seattle-based podcaster Brandi Kruse was removed from the venue with her hand restrained behind her back. Separately, a Lyft driver reportedly removed four passengers wearing XX-XY shirts from his car after learning which side of the issue they supported.
Reluctance to speak openly
The climate of intimidation extended beyond rallies and arenas. At a cross country meet roughly a month ago involving a transgender athlete who had switched to the girls’ team midseason, only two of about 100 parents present agreed to speak on the record, with most declining even to comment anonymously. One father explained, “I don’t want my house burned down.”
Supporters of the ballot measures argue the election results in Washington and Colorado show that public opinion on the issue differs sharply from the pressure campaigns waged against those who spoke out — and that voters in both states rejected warnings from opponents, including claims that Washington’s measure would lead to “invasive genital exams.”
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