General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsTransgender ballot initiative could require genital exams for WA secondary school students
https://www.kuow.org/stories/transgender-ballot-initiative-could-require-genital-exams-for-wa-secondary-school-students(snip)
Language in the initiative claims that kids are already required to undergo verification of their biological sex before they can play sports. But KUOW spoke with medical professionals and a school sports official who said otherwise. Paperwork used by medical professionals in sports physicals also shows that the initiative would be a departure from current state requirements for athletic participation.
According to the initiative, students would have several options to confirm their sex: a visual genital exam, a lab test to determine their genetic makeup, or an analysis of testosterone levels in the blood. The genital exam, which a medical professional can conduct without touching the child, would likely be the most accessible option for most kids.
(snip)
Conservative hedge fund manager Brian Heywood and his political action committee Lets Go Washington are backing the measure. Heywood said hes concerned with fairness and safety in girls sports, insisting that transgender girls have physical advantages over cisgender girls.
This story is about a month old, but provides a pretty good idea of what it's going to look like in more than half the states in the nation.
MustLoveBeagles
(18,422 posts)Solly Mack
(97,471 posts)Bayard
(30,730 posts)I_UndergroundPanther
(13,411 posts)Until its no men.i dont trust dirty old men or younger men looking at me there. Its private. Not to be gawked at. Republicans are perverts to thier disgusting core.
PCIntern
(28,825 posts)after he has a couple tic tacs.
QueerDuck
(2,272 posts)We already know that institutions routinely fail to protect children from the medical professionals they trust.
Who exactly is going to perform these mandatory checks? By creating a system that forces young children to undergo invasive examinations just to play sports, we are actively building the perfect playground for the next Larry Nassar or Jerry Sandusky.
History has already shown us what happens when we give unchecked physical access to people like Richard Strauss, Robert Anderson, George Tyndall, Bradford Bomba, or Jimmy Savile --- and then rely on sports boards and schools to police them.
They don't protect the kids --- they protect the institution. This isn't just a violation of privacy... it is a systemic safeguarding disaster waiting to happen.
But it is worse than just institutional failure. Even when a predator is caught, the justice system itself fails them. Look at what happened with former attorney Adam Hoffman ... he signed a written confession admitting to abusing a child, yet Ken Paxtons office handed him a sweetheart plea deal that let him avoid the sex offender registry and serve just a few weeks in jail.
If major universities, Olympic committees, and even state Attorneys General choose to shield predators or cut them lenient deals, why on earth would we mandate invasive physical exams for elementary school athletes?
We are creating an assembly line of vulnerability for our children.
IcyPeas
(25,989 posts)HAB911
(10,740 posts)