As of June 2021, over 70 state-level bills promoting bans on participation in and access to sport for transgender (trans) youth have been proposed in 34 American states, marking 2021 as the most dangerous legislative session for the protection of trans athletes in the history of the United States. Ten such bills have become law.

In response to this onslaught of anti-trans bills, a small group of scholars (Dr. Anna Baeth, Dr. Libby Sharrow, Dr. Lindsay Pieper, Anne Lieberman, and Dr. Jaime Schultz) have written the attached document.

The document is a response to these bills, using scholarly research from multiple disciplines to demonstrate that the future of sports for women and girls includes both trans and cisgender women. This document engages a close reading of peer-reviewed, credible sources to: a) dispel misinformation regarding transgender athletes that has been widely circulated in recent media and American political debates, b) outline critical legal and policy discussions about transgender athletes; and c) highlight why access to sport matters for everyone.