A house RESOLUTION

 

TO call on Congress to REAFFIRM TITLE IX'S PROTECTIONs THAT AFFORD every woman and girl equal opportunities in athletics and to urge the supreme Court of the United States to uphold THE authority OF EVERY STATE to ensure women's sports are reserved for females ONLY.

 

Whereas, with respect to biological sex, a person is either male or female; and

 

Whereas, there are inherent and enduring biological differences between males and females that put males at a competitive advantage in sports and jeopardize women's safety and privacy when they have to compete against males; and

 

Whereas, for more than fifty years, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. Section 1681, et seq.) has guaranteed that no person shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in or denied the benefits of any federally funded education program; and

 

Whereas, Title IX's protections have historically recognized the biological differences between males and females, including sex-specific athletic teams in educational institutions to ensure equal opportunities for women and girls; and

 

Whereas, having separate sex-specific teams furthers efforts to promote sex equality by providing opportunities for female athletes to demonstrate their skill, strength, and athletic abilities while also providing them with opportunities to obtain recognition, accolades, college scholarships, and the numerous other long-term benefits that flow from success in athletic endeavors; and

 

Whereas, allowing males to compete in women's sports reverses fifty years of advancement for women; and

 

Whereas, science and common sense tell us that males generally have bigger bodies, larger hearts and lungs, denser bones, and stronger muscles than females, giving them a competitive advantage that cannot be undone with testosterone suppression; and

 

Whereas, in 2022, a male named Lia Thomas broke six records at the Ivy League Women's Championships, won four women's Ivy League championships, and won a women's NCAA championship in the 500-yard freestyle, beating two former Olympic medalists; and

 

Whereas, allowing males to compete in contact sports creates significant risks of physical harm; and

 

Whereas, in North Carolina, seventeen-year-old Payton McNabb suffered partial paralysis after competing against a male volleyball player who spiked the ball so hard it caused her severe head and neck injuries; and

 

Whereas, maintaining separate female sports teams based on sex promotes the safety of female athletes by protecting them from predictable and preventable injuries that could result from forcing girls to compete against male athletes; and

 

Whereas, allowing men into female-only spaces, including locker rooms, changing areas, restrooms, and overnight sleeping accommodations, erases the privacy and safety those spaces were built to protect; and

 

Whereas, in West Virginia, a seventh-grade girl named Adaleia Cross was forced to share a locker room and compete with a male athlete. That athlete sexually harassed Adaleia in the girls' locker room and took her spot in a championship track-and-field event. The distress robbed her of much of her passion for sports; and

 

Whereas, no person should have to compromise their dignity or privacy to validate someone else's subjective perception of their identity; and

 

Whereas South Carolina enacted the Save Women's Sports Act in 2022, joining more than half the country in protecting fairness in women's sports; and

 

Whereas, the South Carolina House of Representatives recognizes and respects the physiological differences between the two sexes and is committed to protecting fairness in women's sports and safeguarding women's safety and privacy; and

 

Whereas, the South Carolina House of Representatives calls on Congress to enact federal legislation to reaffirm that Title IX guarantees every woman and girl equal opportunities in athletics and that allowing males to compete on women's teams or access women's private spaces violates Title IX; and

 

Whereas, the South Carolina House of Representatives urges the Supreme Court of the United States to uphold each state's authority to ensure the category of women's sports are reserved for females only and allow states to restore common sense, fairness, and safety in women's sports by recognizing biological truth. Now, therefore,

 

Be it resolved by the House of Representatives:

 

That the members of the South Carolina House of Representatives, by this resolution, call on Congress to reaffirm Title IX's protections that afford every woman and girl equal opportunities in athletics and urge the Supreme Court of the United States to uphold the authority of every state to ensure women's sports are reserved for females only.

 

Be it further resolved that a copy of this resolution be forwarded to the members of South Carolina's Congressional delegation and to the Clerk of the Supreme Court of the United States.

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