ST. PAUL – Recently the State of Minnesota was sued by the U.S. Department of Justice for failing to adhere to Title IX, which prohibits discrimination based on sex in education programs and activities that receive federal financial assistance.
This week, the Minnesota House of Representatives attempted to end this illegal practice by debating the Preserving Girls Sports Act on the House floor. The bill, which is chief-authored by State Representative Peggy Scott (R-Andover), would prohibit boys from playing in girls’ sports in Minnesota.
“By allowing biological males to compete in biological girls’ competitions, all we’ve fought for through Title IX and women’s athletics is meaningless,” Scott said. “The federal government recognizes it. The International Olympic Committee recognizes it. Minnesota House Republicans recognize it. Yet not one House Democrat could find the courage to stand up for girls in the State of Minnesota, and that is just shameful.”
According to the U.S. Department of Justice complaint, Defendants Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) and the Minnesota State High School League (MSHSL) have engaged in sex-based discrimination by requiring girls to compete against boys in athletic competitions that are designated exclusively for girls and allowing boys to invade intimate spaces designated exclusively for girls, such as multi-person locker rooms and bathrooms.
Scott’s Preserving Girls Sports Act would end this Title IX violation. Her bill specifically states that only students of the female sex may participate in an elementary or secondary school athletic team or sport that an educational institution has restricted on the basis of sex to women or girls.
Scott said the bill received a full vote of the Minnesota House on April 7. All 67 Republicans voted for the proposal, and all 66 Democrats voted against it. Because 68 votes are needed for legislation to be approved in the Minnesota House, her Preserving Girls Sports Act failed to pass by one vote.
“It’s embarrassing that for a second time this biennium, every House Democrat has voted in favor of sex-based discrimination,” Scott concluded.