Gina Arena, State Senate candidate, 40th District -NY
By Dan Murphy
The New York Board of Regents has tabled a proposal which would allow high school boys to compete in girls only sports, after opposition to the plan poured into the State Education Department, who had submitted the plan to the Board of Regents.
According to a Dept of Education spokesman, the Mixed Competition Regulation will not be voted on until the department reviews hundreds of comments it received.
Opposition to the plan in Westchester is being led by Gina Arena, candidate for State Senate in the 40th district. Arena, a mother of six girls, launched a lawn sign awareness campaign across the lower Hudson Valley to “Save Girls Sports.”
“After 52 years of Title IX progress, New York State has shamefully become the national leader in discriminating against women and girls in sports, and that’s unacceptable,” Ms. Arena said. “Sixty-six percent of New Yorkers recently surveyed said they want Girls Sports left alone, but radical progressives, like my opponent State Senator Pete Harckham, think they know better than the rest of us. Girls work hard to get on sports teams, and many dream of earning athletic scholarships to college, but that will all be jeopardized if they are forced to compete against boys and other biological males. This is a clear issue of common sense, safety, and fairness; there is nothing logical or fair about what New York State is planning.”
At the same time, a constitutional amendment in New York that is on the ballot Nov. 5, Proposition One, would give biological males a constitutional right to play on girls sports teams here.
Athletic Directors at school districts across the state have called the proposal ‘irresponsible’
Under the plan, boys would be allowed to join high school girls sports teams that do not have a similar boys team. So, sports that have both a boys and a girls program, like basketball, soccer and lacrosse, will not be affected. But girls sports including field hockey and flag football would allow boys to join if enacted by the Board of Regents, or if Prop One is approved by the voters.
The proposal would also work conversely, with girls having the right to join boys high school sports teams that have no girls team equivalent. But that is now what has drawn the opposition from many. It is the fear that girls will lose their place on a team replaced by boys. And the possibility of stronger boys playing on the same team gives them an unfair advantage and opens up the possibility of injury, is what many in NY Athletics have called into question.
The state Athletic Administrators Association said that they are “adamantly opposed and rightfully concerned about the potential physical, mental, and liability implications for school districts, community members, families, and specifically, female athletes. These implications could include increased risk of injury, unfair competition, and potential loss of opportunities in their respective sports,” regarding Mixed Competition. “The mandate is unnecessary, irresponsible, and an infringement upon girls’ sports during a time when their chosen sports are being invaded by politics and a total disregard for existing regulations that protect female athletes.”
State Education Department officials had said their proposal reflected their commitment to “providing athletes of all genders equal opportunities to play and participate in extra class athletic activities.”
“This includes promoting equality between separate male and female athletic programs and encouraging mixed gender teams,” the department wrote in its summary of the rule changes. “The Department believes this is an important step in ensuring equality.”
Arena said she launched her lawn sign campaign to encourage others to step forward. “I’ve spoken with countless high school girls who want their sports left alone, but are too afraid to speak out,” Ms. Arena continued. “These young women are terrified of being ‘canceled’ for defending their right to compete against other girls. How is it possible that women and girls are being criticized for sticking up for their rights in this day and age? It’s disgraceful.”
Another nonpartisan group, The Coalition to Protect Kids-NY is educating New Yorkers about proposition one. “Proposition One is a dangerously worded proposal that could establish the permanent right of biological males to compete on girls and women’s sports teams, threatening athletic scholarships for young women and taking away precious playing time. Sixty-six percent (66%) of New Yorkers recently surveyed by the Siena College Research Institute said they oppose biological males competing on girls and women’s sports teams in New York State.
“Prop One could also prevent parents from knowing, or having a say, if a child is transitioning genders in school, at a time when European nations and many U.S. States are banning underage transgender surgeries because of the harm they have caused young people. The carelessly worded ballot issue that would amend New York’s Constitution also includes language surrounding age that could threaten sensible age restrictions for young people — laws on smoking for example — and senior housing facilities that require residents to be 55 or older.”
“Our strictly nonpartisan coalition is fully supportive of the LGBTQ+ community. That includes protecting young people from making permanent, and potentially tragic, life decisions without the input of their guardians,” said Ayesha Kreutz, spokeswoman, Coalition to Protect Kids-NY
The Mixed Competition Regulation proposal does not affect transgender athletes. They already have the right to choose the gender sport they want to play on, based on anti-discrimination laws in New York.
Ms. Arena, a longtime children and families advocate and a lifelong Westchester resident, garnered 47% of the vote against Mr. Harkham in 2022. She is challenging Harckham again on November 5. The 40th State Senate District spans Westchester, Putnam, and Rockland counties.
