‘WEB OF LIES’

Alabama Officially Bans Trans Kids From Playing School Sports

Alabama’s governor Kay Ivey signed House Bill 391 into law Friday, banning trans youth from playing sports that align with their gender identity from kindergarten to 12th grade.

Alabama has officially banned young trans people from being able to compete in school sports. The state’s governor Kay Ivey signed House Bill 391 into law Friday, banning trans youth from playing sports that align with their gender identity from kindergarten to 12^th grade. Similar bills banning young trans people from playing sports have been signed into law in Mississippi, Tennessee, and Arkansas, while the governors of Kansas and North Dakota this week vetoed similar bans.

“This bill is a shameful bill that is built on a web of lies and misinformation. Transgender youth have been playing sports consistent with their gender identity for years without incident on the collegiate and professional level. They just want access to the same childhood experiences as their peers,” said Human Rights Campaign Alabama State Director Carmarion D. Harvey-Anderson in a statement. “Ultimately, HB 391 will not just hurt transgender kids. It will hurt all Alabamans because the consequences of this law—economic harm, expensive taxpayer-funded legal battles, and a tarnished reputation—will ripple across the state.”

There are a number of pieces of anti-LGBTQ legislation passed in state legislatures awaiting governors’ signatures, and around 250 anti-LGBTQ bills under consideration in state legislatures, according to the Human Rights Campaign. More than 120 directly target transgender people and at least 66 would, like HB 391, ban trans girls from participating in sports consistent with their gender identity.