Twelve-time NCAA All-American swimmer Riley Gaines, an outspoken advocate for keeping women’s sports exclusive to women, ripped into White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre for disputing the idea that males competing in women’s sports could be dangerous for women.
A reporter asked Jean-Pierre what the Biden administration would say to parents worried that their daughter might have to compete against men and be unsafe as a result.
“What you’re alluding to is basically saying that transgender kids are dangerous,” Jean Pierre stated. “That is dangerous. That is a dangerous thing to say.”
“When they say ‘inclusion,’ just know they really mean ‘exclusion,’” Gaines fired. “The message this sends to ALL women is that our safety doesn’t matter. Nor does our privacy, our fairness, our equal opportunities, or our dignity. The misogyny is slapping us across the face.”
When they say "inclusion", just know they really mean "exclusion".
The message this sends to ALL women is that our safety doesn't matter. Nor does our privacy, our fairness, our equal opportunities, or our dignity. The misogyny is slapping us across the face. #SaveWomensSports https://t.co/DYqZDiQF7p
— Riley Gaines (@Riley_Gaines_) June 14, 2023
In February, Gaines, an All-American at the University of Kentucky and a five-time Southeastern Conference champion, called for the NCAA to have separate facilities for transgender-identifying competitors. She said seeing the male genitalia of Lia Thomas, who swam for the University of Pennsylvania, in the locker room left her feeling violated.
“There’s a 6’4” biological man dropping his pants and watching us undress, and we were exposed to male genitalia,” she recalled. “Not even probably a year, two years ago, this would have been considered some form of sexual assault, voyeurism. But now, not even are they just allowing it to happen, it’s almost as if these large organizations are encouraging it to happen.”
Gaines has continued to advocate for women following the end of her collegiate swimming career.
“I’m speaking for every female athlete, not just myself,” Gaines said during an interview with British broadcaster Piers Morgan in April. “I’m done competing. This isn’t about me. But I know what’s at stake if someone doesn’t use their voice. I have a younger sister. I just got married. I can only hope one day that I have a daughter and I can’t imagine being in this position and not fighting for them.”
The topic has bled into popular culture, with many popular commentators making their position on the issue clear. In March, podcaster Joe Rogan sounded off on transgender athletes.
“It’s why we have weight classes. It’s why we should have the difference between females and males competing against each other, which is why this trans athlete thing f***ing blows my mind – how many people go along with this?” Rogan said. “It just blows my mind.”