In her recent PennLive op-ed, Emily Kreps, a former collegiate swimmer and legal assistant for the Pennsylvania Family Institute, highlights a cultural shift toward recognizing biological differences and protecting girls’ sports across Pennsylvania and the nation. She argues that 2025 could be a pivotal year for safeguarding fairness and safety in girls’ athletics, thanks to growing bipartisan support and increasing advocacy by lawmakers, athletes, and parents.
Key Legislative Efforts
At the forefront of this movement in Pennsylvania is the Save Women’s Sports Act, championed by Republican women in the State Senate, including Senators Judy Ward and Kristin Phillips-Hill. Their initiative seeks to ensure that athletic competitions remain fair by requiring biological males to compete in male categories. In their co-sponsor memo, they emphasize:
“It’s imperative that we protect the opportunity for female athletes to compete on the athletic field in a fair and equal manner. Allowing a biological male to compete on a women’s scholastic athletic team puts all women on the playing field at an automatic disadvantage.”
While the Senate is likely to pass the bill, its fate rests in the hands of Pennsylvania’s Democrat-controlled House and Governor Josh Shapiro. Past legislative efforts received bipartisan support but were thwarted by vetoes, underscoring the challenges ahead.
Public and National Support
Public opinion increasingly aligns with these legislative efforts. A recent poll by Parents Defending Education found that 78% of parents oppose biological males competing in girls’ sports, cutting across party and racial lines. Nationally, Democrats like U.S. Congressmen Seth Moulton and Tom Suozzi have voiced support for keeping female sports exclusive to biological females, breaking the partisan divide.
The Stakes Are High
The op-ed underscores the tangible consequences of failing to address this issue. By March 2024, over 600 female athletes had lost nearly 900 medals to transgender competitors in international competitions. In Pennsylvania alone, there have been 66 documented instances since 2020 where female athletes lost placements to male competitors. Beyond fairness, safety is also a concern, as evidenced by Payton McNabb’s career-ending injury from competing against a trans-identifying male athlete in volleyball.
The Shift in Culture
Kreps argues that recent years have seen a cultural turning point. Athletes and teams are increasingly speaking out, filing lawsuits, and forfeiting matches to protect fairness and safety. Influential voices like Riley Gaines and Lily Williams are inspiring this wave of advocacy.
Kreps concludes by celebrating the courage of these advocates and urging lawmakers to prioritize fairness and safety for girls in sports. As she puts it, this movement is driven by “fairness, safety, and common sense.”
Read the full op-ed by Emily Kreps on PennLive.
Michael Gear,
I enjoy hearing you reporting the PA News on Saturdays on 88.5 FM at 7:00 a.m. Of course, I didn’t enjoy the message about the abortion. Too bad Planned Parenthood has so much influence in funding it. As a Christian nation, we have to stand up against killing all those babies.
news
Well spoken. I am very concerned, that our governor will not stand up for the women of Pennsylvania in this case.