Tweet

Iowa has a significant history of uplifting and supporting LGBTQ rights. This year, Iowa celebrates its 13th year of marriage equality for same-sex couples as well as its 15th anniversary of adding sexual orientation and gender identity to the Iowa Civil Rights Act. However, these wins did not come without a fight. Opponents of LGBTQ rights have not given up but rather changed direction.

On March 3, 2022, Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds signed into law a bill she has been asking to see come across her desk for a year. House File 2416 (HF 2416), better known as the Trans Sports Ban or Trans Athlete Ban, immediately prohibits transgender women and girls from participating in school sports from kindergarten through college, including the NCAA and NAIA. Reynolds has pushed this topic under the guise of a “fairness issue,” saying that she is protecting girls’ sports from the physical advantages of “biological males.” The bill says nothing about transgender males competing in men’s sports.

The idea that cisgender women, women whose gender identity matches their sex assigned at birth, has been disproven on more than one occasion. A study conducted by Dr. Timothy Roberts, a pediatrician at Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, analyzed the athletic performances of transgender athletes in the Air Force. The study shows that by the second year of hormone replacement therapy (HRT), the results were on par.

“The performance of the transgender women was indistinguishable from the performance of the average cis woman in the Air Force,” Roberts said.

 Although these accusations have been proven false, the attacks on the transgender community have continued to rise.

Since 2016, Republicans have had control of all three chambers of government in the state of Iowa. Since then, LGBTQ equality has decreased, and the willingness to entertain anti-LGBTQ policies has mirrored the growth of the Republican party in Iowa. Anti-LGBTQ policies and laws aim to limit or dismantle LGBTQ rights. In 2020, 14 anti-LGBTQ bills were introduced to the legislature. In 2021, the number increased to 15 bills. And in 2022, 28 anti-LGBTQ bills were introduced, 14 of them being targeted directly at the trans community and more specifically, transgender youth.

 Besides the Trans Sports Ban, examples of anti-LGBTQ bills include denying medically necessary care for trans youth, preventing transgender people from using the bathroom that corresponds with their gender identity and allowing for discrimination against LGBTQ people in employment, foster care, adoption and more.

The growing rate of anti-transgender legislation is reflected nationally as well. Numbers have continually increased from 35 bills in 2019 to 100 bills in 2020, 180 bills in 2021, and approximately 250 anti-transgender bills in 2022.

So, is it really about protecting women’s sports?

Keenan Crow is the Director of Policy and Advocacy at One Iowa, and they are the primary lobbyist at the statehouse while the legislative session is happening. Crow also runs field campaigns, works with candidates, constructs endorsements and runs the policy and advocacy side of the organization.

Crow compared the Trans Sports Ban to a widely known case following marriage equality. In the “Gay Wedding Cake” case, a baker in Colorado refused to sell a same-sex couple a wedding cake; the controversy being whether a baker should have to sell same-sex couples wedding cakes or not.

“Was it ever really about the cake?” Crow asked. “No, it wasn’t. It was really about picking the flimsiest issue among political moderates.”

Crow believes that bills of this nature are being used by the Republican party to score political points. Banning transgender women and girls from playing sports resonates the best with moderate voters and some democratic voters so long as the narrative that it is to protect the fairness and equality of women’s sports is being pushed.

However, there are real issues plaguing the fairness and equality of women’s sports. Women’s athletics face higher rates of physical and sexual assault, they receive less media coverage, less money, less resources, and fewer scholarships.

“If folks were actually concerned about fairness and actually concerned about improving women’s sports, they would tackle any of those things first,” Crow said.

Because Grand View is part of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), this law impacts GV as well. Troy Plummer, Director of Athletics at GV, says that the school will follow state law banning transgender women from participating in women’s sports, but will continue to follow NAIA policy regarding transgender male athletes.

However, the law does not exclude transgender women in other states from competing in NAIA events that are hosted in the state of Iowa, so long as they are compliant with NAIA regulations.

Plummer says that GV will deal with any situation as it arises.

“I believe that everyone deserves to be supported,” Plummer said.

Crow, One Iowa and several other organizations and coalitions are working together in the fight for LBGTQ equality, but nothing happens at the statehouse with just one person or organization.

“We’re all working very hard to mitigate the damage that this is going to do to trans kids across the state,” Crow said.

Some of those actions include lobbying people at every level, including the governor, having one-on-one conversations with state representatives, getting LGBTQ members and their allies to call their representatives, organizing events and getting people to testify at public hearings.

Hearing the voices of parents and children impacted by these laws, as well as the opinions of medical and mental health professionals, help keep legislators, school officials and the public well-informed. If those voices are never heard, people cannot make an informed decision—even if they don’t agree.

Ankeny, Iowa is home to one charismatic, talkative, soon-to-be-seven-year-old Lily Bjorklund, a transgender first-grader who was recently featured on KCCI after speaking at an Ankeny School Board meeting on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. Lily understands the importance of speaking up and sharing her story. Her adoration for conversation makes her the perfect candidate for the job.

“I wasn’t sure how she would be at that public setting. But when we walked out, she was on cloud nine,” Jill Bjorklund, Lily’s mom, said.

Jill said that Lily’s school was very accepting, and there were no issues changing her name, pronouns or gender marker. The transition at school was easy after COVID-19. Lily had not seen most of her classmates in person since she came out. 

“At my school, there aren’t too much bullies actually,” Lily said. “My class accepts me.”

Lily loves to run around, but she is not really into sports right now. However, having that option taken out of the mix leaves very little wiggle room for her to find her thing. She is currently taking dance classes and does not enjoy it as much as she originally thought she would, so they are looking into different activities that she might enjoy, like gymnastics.

When Lily first came out, her family tried to keep her in a safe little bubble, innocent to the world around her. They continue to champion queer representation, whether it is through television, books or social media. Lily has become accustomed to seeing the trans community succeeding, but does not always understand how big of a deal it is.

“She doesn’t quite understand the magnitude or the severity of the hard work that has led us to where we are today,” Jill said.

Although innocent, Lily is certainly not oblivious to the world around her, and the safe bubble is becoming harder to maintain as she hears news that affects her community like the Trans Sports Ban. Lily’s response has been and continues to be nothing short of admirable. She has made videos for legislators, spoken to politicians and presidents, and attended LGBTQ positive events, like the Trans Lives Rally recently held at the Capitol. Lily knows the importance of representation, or in six-year-old terms, why it is important for other people to see kids like her.

“If they don’t see kids like us they’ll probably say, ‘They’re freaks’ or ‘They’re monsters’ and ‘They aren’t supposed to be here,’ which is kind of cruel because we are all humans. It’s okay to be different,” Lily said. “So it’s kind of important to see different people so you aren’t just used to only this.”

Advocating for LGBTQ equality goes beyond simply being an ally. Having tough conversations with friends and family members, coworkers, teachers and peers about why trans rights are important is a good start toward making change. By lessening the myths, misunderstandings and misinformation surrounding the transgender community, the harder it will become for opponents to spread misinformation successfully. Other ways to support the transgender community include:

• Following One Iowa and One Iowa Action on social media.
• Signing up for One Iowa’s “Action Alert” system (rapid response system to quickly get in contact with legislators).
• Showing up to events and rallies that support the LGBTQ community.
• Donating to any of the organizations listed above.
• TALK TO YOUR LEGISLATORS.