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Nike, NFL women’s sports Super Bowl commercials draw backlash amid national trans athlete controversies

As America’s sports world remains locked in an ongoing culture war over the presence of trans athletes in women’s sports, this year’s Super Bowl ad slate became a battleground.

Two commercials in particular drew the ire of many who advocate for protecting female athletes from trans inclusion.

One ad that drew the outrage was directly from the NFL and boasted one of the longest run times of the entire night. The league’s “Leave The Past Behind” spot, which intended to promote the spread of girls’ flag football to more high schools across the country, offended some with its portrayal of a female flag football player outperforming male players.

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Many critics took issue with the commercial for promoting imagery of females competing evenly and more superior to males. The notion that female athletes are not at a physical disadvantage compared to their male counterparts is often used in arguments promoting trans inclusion in women’s sports.

The women’s advocacy group “Women Are Real” slammed the ad for promoting that notion in a reply on X.

“I hate this ad with all my heart. We know we can’t compete against a team of men. It’s a lie. And it’s a slap in the face of every phenomenal female athlete. Women’s sports is about female excellence. Leave the men out of this,” the advocacy group’s X account wrote in response, and later posted more replies.

“Support your daughter’s development as a female athlete. Don’t compare her to boys this will only discourage her. This ad is a lie that serves as a slap in the face of all hardworking female athletes. Women’s sports is about female excellence. Leave men out of it.”

Marshi Smith, the co-founder of the legal advocacy group the Independent Council on Women’s Sports, called out the NFL for its ad in her own post on X.

“Why is the world obsessed with showing women playing sports against men?” Smith wrote. “Give us our own [God d—] sports and stop comparing us.”

Casey Caston, founder of the marriage-counseling website Marriage 365, criticized the ad for showing “unrealistic” imagery.

“I love women’s sports, but this is completely unrealistic and disrespects gender differences that exist,” Caston wrote on X, later adding, “Women weren’t created to do everything a man CAN do. Women were created to do everything a man CAN’T do.”

Still, the commercial was praised by other social media users for its message of trying to spread girls’ flag football to other schools, overlooking its imagery.

The other commercial that outraged advocates opposed to trans inclusion came from Nike, but for a deeper-seated reason.

The sportswear juggernaut debuted its first Super Bowl commercial in 27 years, featuring a star-studded lineup of women athletes including Caitlin Clark, Sha’Carri Richardson, Jordan Chiles and JuJu Watkins.

However, many critics were quick to call out Nike for its official company stance in supporting trans athletes competing in women’s sports.

Former NCAA swimmer and current conservative activist Riley Gaines slammed Nike’s ad, while in the same breath promoted the startup sportswear ad XX-XY Athletics, which specializes in activist apparel with messaging protecting female athletes from trans inclusion.

XX-XY ATHLETICS LOOKS TO REDEFINE MAINSTREAM IN 2025, EYEING WOMEN’S SPORTS STARS AND HIT VIRAL ADS

“Ditch Nike Support XX-XY Athletics,” Gaines wrote in a re-share of the commercial on X. Gaines is the first brand ambassador for XX-XY Athletics.

The startup company’s founder, former U.S. gymnast and Levi’s executive Jennifer Sey, also called out Nike for the ad while promoting her own brand in a series of posts on X.

“You’re so full of it. The only thing female athletes are told they can’t do is stand up for the integrity of their sports, for keeping men out of women’s sports. Literally, that’s the only thing,” Sey wrote in response to the commercial on X.

Famed sports broadcaster and journalist Michelle Tafoya also called out Nike while promoting Sey’s brand in a series of posts on X.

“Nike is too late to this party. And they’re stuck in stereotypical language from about 25 years ago,” Tafoya wrote, later adding, “What a waste of ad dollars.”

Data suggests the vast majority of Americans, including most Democrats, are opposed to allowing trans athletes to compete in women’s and girls’ sports.

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A recent New York Times/Ipsos survey found the vast majority of Americans, including a majority of Democrats, do not think transgender athletes should be permitted to compete in women’s sports. Of the 2,128 people polled, 79% said biological males who identify as women should not be allowed to participate in women’s sports.

Of the 1,025 people who identified as Democrats or leaning Democrat, 67% said transgender athletes should not be allowed to compete with women.

Nearly 70% of Americans say biological men should not be permitted to compete in women’s sports, according to a Gallup poll last year.

In June, a survey conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago asked respondents whether transgender athletes of both sexes should be permitted to participate in sports leagues that correspond to their preferred gender identity instead of their biological sex. In that survey, 65% answered that it should never or rarely be allowed. When those polled were asked specifically about adult transgender female athletes competing in women’s sports, 69% opposed it.

President Donald Trump recently took executive action to address the issue, signing the “No Men in Women’s Sports” executive order” on Feb. 5.

However, some states have indicated they will refuse to follow the order and continue allowing biological males to participate and share locker rooms with female athletes, including California and Minnesota.

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Jackson Thompson is a sports writer for Fox News Digital. He previously worked for ESPN and Business Insider. Jackson has covered the Super Bowl and NBA Finals, and has interviewed iconic figures Usain Bolt, Rob Gronkowski, Jerry Rice, Troy Aikman, Mike Trout, David Ortiz and Roger Clemens.

February 10, 2025
Canadian Christian women’s basketball team punished over disputed abuse allegations by trans opponent

As women athletes in the U.S. have been granted protection from transgender opponents by President Donald Trump’s latest executive order, women athletes in Canada are still dealing with a nationwide system that protects trans athletes.

The women’s basketball team at Columbia Bible College (CBC) – an evangelical Mennonite Bible College in Abbotsford, British Columbia – is now facing sanctions by its athletic conference, the PACWEST, over disputed allegations of abuse against a transgender opponent earlier this season.

CBC women’s basketball head coach Taylor Claggett is currently suspended, and the school has lost its right to host the upcoming PACWEST championships after a recent investigation by the conference into an incident that occurred in a game against Vancouver Island University (VIU) on Oct. 25.

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“PACWEST has publicly stated that it has concluded its investigation. CBC is deeply disappointed with PACWEST’s decision. We do not believe that a proper process was followed or that the results were fair. As a result, we are taking steps to have PACWEST’s decision reviewed. We will not be commenting further at this time,” read a statement CBC provided to Fox News Digital.

During the Oct. 25 game, VIU trans athlete Harriette Mackenzie alleged Clagett “cornered one of our athletic staff and went on a tirade about how I shouldn’t be allowed to play.” Mackenzie made these allegations in an Instagram post on Oct. 30.

Mackenzie alleged she was also deliberately fouled to the ground by a CBC player.

“I got two-hand chucked to the ground by No. 13 without a play on the ball in sight, then head coach Clagett can be seen applauding in support,” the trans athlete said.

Clagett posted her own statement on Instagram, claiming that Mackenzie’s statements were inaccurate.

“My intention has nothing to do with a specific athlete, but instead, the safety of female athletes in their sport,” she wrote.

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When the two teams were set to play each other again in a pair of games in early January, VIU refused to participate, citing the alleged Oct. 25 incident. VIU even requested PACWEST not to penalize its team for forfeiting, in a statement it provided to Fox News Digital.

After news of the forfeit, CBC provided a statement to Fox News Digital denying Mackenzie’s allegations.

“This was surprising news to us,” the statement read. “CBC stands for safe play for all. Accusations that CBC, its coaches, players, and fans are a safety threat are simply untrue and misinformed.”

A letter written by the CBC players, obtained by Fox News Digital, condemned VIU’s team for “personal attacks,” “defamatory comments” and even “comments that incite violence,” against their coach.

“Videos and letters posted by members of the VIU women’s basketball team over the past three months have directly violated multiple rules stated in Article 17.2 of the manual. Various posts have included ‘personal attacks,’ ‘defamatory comments,’ ‘lack of respect towards the PACWEST,’ and led to ‘comments that incite to violence and/or hatred’ directed at our coach,” the letter read.

“Any and all allegations made by VIU players regarding our team and coach should have been directly communicated to PACWEST officials alone, they should not have been uploaded publicly to social media.”

The letter even called the VIU players’ statements “misinformation.”

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“The attack on Coach Claggett’s character, and the character of our team, over the past three months has been based on misinformation and one side of a complicated scenario,” it read.

Since June 2017, all places within Canada must comply with the Canadian Human Rights Act, equal opportunity and/or anti-discrimination legislation prohibit discrimination against gender identity or gender identity expression. This law protects the inclusion of all trans athletes in women’s and girls’ sports.

Trump’s recent executive order in the US states that any publicly-funded institution that allows trans athletes to compete in girls’ or women’s sports will lose its federal funding.

Trump has also repeatedly suggested that Canada join the U.S., potentially as the 51st state.

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Jackson Thompson is a sports writer for Fox News Digital. He previously worked for ESPN and Business Insider. Jackson has covered the Super Bowl and NBA Finals, and has interviewed iconic figures Usain Bolt, Rob Gronkowski, Jerry Rice, Troy Aikman, Mike Trout, David Ortiz and Roger Clemens.

February 10, 2025
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The California Interscholastic Federation (CIF)’s refusal to comply with President Donald Trump’s executive order banning trans athletes from girls’ and women’s sports has prompted outrage within the state.

On Friday, residents gathered in Long Beach, California, to protest outside of a CIF federated board meeting.

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The protesters then spoke at the board meeting, pleading with the CIF officials to follow the president’s order.

Protesters even threatened civil lawsuits against the CIF and state in case they continue to refuse compliance with Trump. Currently, there is one lawsuit against the CIF and the state’s attorney general, Rob Bonta, over a situation at Martin Luther King High School involving a trans athlete on the girls’ cross-country team.

“There will be more lawsuits to follow if the CIF does not follow federal law,” said Julianne Fleischer, a Legal Counsel at Advocates for Faith & Freedom, at the event. “I want CIF to know that it is important you follow federal law or you will be held accountable for failing to enforce federal law throughout the school districts … with more lawsuits they’re going to spend significant funds on litigation.”

Trump’s executive order states that any school receiving federal funding that allows biological males to compete in the girls’ or women’s category will lose that federal funding. According to USA Facts, California public schools receive about $16.8 billion per year, which is 13.9% or one in every seven dollars of public school funding, which is well above the national average.

Many of the protesters there made it a point to warn the state of the consequences of losing that federal funding.

A California school district employee showed up at the protest to plead with the CIF to follow Trump’s order. Sonja Shaw, Chino Valley Unified School Board President, spoke from her perspective as a mother and became visibly emotional when she scolded the CIF for its decision, calling it “shameful.”

“Whoever is in CIF at the top level putting out those woke weird toolkit on telling boys about how to compete against girls, if you’re a part of that, you’re disgusting, and you need to step out of here,” Shaw said.

In California, a law called AB 1266 has been in effect since 2014, giving California students at the scholastic and collegiate levels the right to “participate in sex-segregated school programs and activities, including athletic teams and competitions, and use facilities consistent with his or her gender identity, irrespective of the gender listed on the pupil’s records.”

California Code of Regulations section 4910(k) defines gender as, “A person’s actual sex or perceived sex includes a person’s perceived identity, appearance or behavior, whether or not that identity, appearance, or behavior is different from that traditionally associated with a person’s sex at birth.”

CIF Bylaw 300.D. mirrors the Education Code, stating, “All students should have the opportunity to participate in CIF activities in a manner that is consistent with their gender identity, irrespective of the gender listed on a student’s records.”

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These laws and the subsequent enabling of trans athletes to compete with girls and women in the state have resulted in multiple controversies over the issue in the last year alone.

At Martin Luther King High School, the father of a girl who lost her varsity spot to the trans cross-country athlete previously told Fox News Digital that his daughter and other girls at the school had been told that “transgenders have more rights than cisgender[s]” by school administrators when they protested the athlete’s participation.

That father, longtime firefighter Ryan Starling, showed up at the protests and board meeting on Friday and shared his daughter’s story.

“We’re asking you guys today to be bold and be brave and stand up for our girls,” Starling said.

Starling also suggested that the CIF set up a category specifically for trans athletes, to avoid exclusion.

“How about you make an open category? Start protecting our girls immediately so that everybody can still compete, but that everybody has their place,” Starling said.

Starling’s family is a plaintiff in the current lawsuit against CIF and Bonta. The suit challenges AB 1266, which allows transgender athletes to compete against girls and women, claiming it is a Title IX violation.

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“Plaintiffs seek a federal ruling that AB 1266 violates Title IX as well as a decision holding the District accountable for violating their First Amendment rights. They demand injunctive relief to stop schools from forcing biological girls to compete with and against males, a judgment affirming sex-based protections in athletics and compensation for damages caused by these discriminatory policies,” an Advocates for Faith & Freedom spokesperson said.

The issue of trans athletes competing with girls and women has caused other controversies within the state in recent months.

Stone Ridge Christian High School’s girls’ volleyball team was scheduled to face San Francisco Waldorf in the Northern California Division 6 tournament but forfeited in an announcement just before the match over the presence of a trans athlete on the team.

A transgender volleyball player was booed and harassed at an Oct. 12 match between Notre Dame Belmont in Belmont, California, and Half Moon Bay High School, according to ABC 7. Half Moon Bay rostered the transgender athlete.

California State Assembly member Kate Sanchez announced on Jan. 7 that she is introducing a bill to ban trans athletes from competing in girls’ and women’s sports. Sanchez will propose the Protect Girls’ Sports Act to the state legislature. Currently, 25 states have similar laws in effect.

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Jackson Thompson is a sports writer for Fox News Digital. He previously worked for ESPN and Business Insider. Jackson has covered the Super Bowl and NBA Finals, and has interviewed iconic figures Usain Bolt, Rob Gronkowski, Jerry Rice, Troy Aikman, Mike Trout, David Ortiz and Roger Clemens.

February 8, 2025
California plans to continue allowing trans athletes to compete in girls’ sports despite Trump executive order

The State of California and its public school athletics association has indicated it will not fall in line with President Donald Trump’s latest executive order to keep trans athletes out of girls’ and women’s sports.

The California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) said it will continue to follow the state’s law that allows athletes to participate as whichever gender they identify as, according to The San Francisco Chronicle.

California Family Council Outreach Director Sophia Lorey told Fox News Digital that her state’s intent to defy Trump’s executive order has made her feel “disgusted.”

“I am disgusted that CIF is disregarding yesterday’s executive order and instead doubling down on policies that are not only unfair, but dangerous for young women across California. By prioritizing their idol of transgender ideology over the safety and rights of female athletes, they are knowingly exposing high school girls to unsafe competition and stripping them of opportunities guaranteed for them under Title IX,” Lorey told Fox News Digital.

“One day, the CIF board will look back and realize they chose to be on the wrong side of history. They will have to answer for why they sacrificed the safety, fairness, and dignity of young girls to bow to an ideological agenda. But the rest of us will not stand by while female athletes are illegally prevented from competing fairly in their own sports.”

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President Donald Trump signs the No Men in Women’s Sports Executive Order into law in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 5, 2025. (ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP)

The NCAA announced Thursday that it has amended its policy on gender eligibility so that biological males are no longer allowed to compete in the women’s category in response to Trump’s order.

However, at the youth and high school level, girls may still be at the mercy of state law.

In California, a law called AB 1266 has been in effect since 2014, giving California students at scholastic and collegiate levels the right to “participate in sex-segregated school programs and activities, including athletic teams and competitions, and use facilities consistent with his or her gender identity, irrespective of the gender listed on the pupil’s records.”

California Code of Regulations section 4910(k) defines gender as, “A person’s actual sex or perceived sex and includes a person’s perceived identity, appearance or behavior, whether or not that identity, appearance, or behavior is different from that traditionally associated with a person’s sex at birth.”

CIF Bylaw 300.D. mirrors the Education Code, stating, “All students should have the opportunity to participate in CIF activities in a manner that is consistent with their gender identity, irrespective of the gender listed on a student’s records.”

These laws and the subsequent enabling of trans athletes to compete with girls and women in the state has resulted in multiple controversies over the issue over the last year alone.

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Martin Luther King High School in Riverside, California, is currently embroiled in one of the most contentious local controversies on the issue.

A recent school board meeting by the Riverside Unified School District on Dec. 19 featured a parade of parents berating the board for allowing a trans athlete on the Martin Luther King girls’ cross-country team. A lawsuit filed by two girls on the team alleges that their T-shirts in protest of that player were compared to swastikas simply because they said “Save Girls Sports.”

The father of a girl who lost her varsity spot to the trans athlete previously told Fox News Digital that his daughter and other girls at the school were told “transgenders have more rights than cisgender[s]” by school administrators when they protested the athlete’s participation.

Stone Ridge Christian High School’s girls’ volleyball team was scheduled to face San Francisco Waldorf in the Northern California Division 6 tournament but forfeited in an announcement just before the match over the presence of a trans athlete on the team.

A transgender volleyball player was booed and harassed at an Oct. 12 match between Notre Dame Belmont in Belmont, California, against Half Moon Bay High School, according to ABC 7. Half Moon Bay rostered the transgender athlete.

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California State Assembly member Kate Sanchez announced on Jan. 7 that she is introducing a bill to ban trans athletes from competing in girls’ and women’s sports.

Sanchez will propose the Protect Girls’ Sports Act to the state legislature. Currently, 25 states have similar laws in effect.

“Young women who have spent years training and sacrificing to compete at the highest level are now forced to compete against individuals with undeniable biological advantages. It’s not just unfair – it’s disheartening and dangerous,” Sanchez said in a statement announcing the bill.

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Jackson Thompson is a sports writer for Fox News Digital. He previously worked for ESPN and Business Insider. Jackson has covered the Super Bowl and NBA Finals, and has interviewed iconic figures Usain Bolt, Rob Gronkowski, Jerry Rice, Troy Aikman, Mike Trout, David Ortiz and Roger Clemens.

February 7, 2025
Trump says he’s ‘proud to be the president to save women’s sports’ after NCAA changes trans athlete policy

Gov. Youngkin praises Trump for ‘saving women’s sports’

Gov. Glenn Youngkin, R-Va., celebrates President Donald Trump’s executive order barring transgender athletes from women’s sports and shares his take on the administration eyeing the elimination of the Department of Education on ‘The Will Cain Show.’

President Donald Trump celebrated the NCAA’s announcement of a new policy Thursday that prevents transgender athletes from competing in women’s sports after he signed an executive order to address the issue a day earlier.

Trump proclaimed himself “the president to save women’s sports” in a celebratory Truth Social post. He also suggested the International Olympic Committee (IOC) will be the next major sports institution to follow his order.

“Due to my Executive Order, which I proudly signed yesterday, the NCAA has officially changed their policy of allowing men in Women’s Sports – IT IS NOW BANNED! This is a great day for women and girls across our Country,” Trump wrote.

“Men should have NEVER been allowed to compete against women in the first place, but I am proud to be the President to SAVE Women’s Sports. We expect the Olympics Committee to also use Common Sense, and implement this policy, which is very popular among the American People, and the entire World!”

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The NCAA’s previous policy, which had been in place in 2010, allowed biological males to compete in women’s sports after undergoing at least one year of testosterone suppression treatment. The new policy states, “A student-athlete assigned male at birth may not compete on a women’s team.”

HOW TRANSGENDERISM IN SPORTS SHIFTED THE 2024 ELECTION AND IGNITED A NATIONAL COUNTERCULTURE

Prior to Trump signing the order Wednesday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said part of the motivation behind Trump’s executive order would be to create a “pressure campaign” for the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and NCAA to follow and prevent transgender athletes from competing in women’s sports.

During Trump’s ceremony at the White House to sign the executive order, he announced that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem will prohibit any transgender athletes attempting to compete as women from entering the country for the Olympics in 2028.

Trump said he will instruct Noem “to deny any and all visa applications made by men attempting to fraudulently enter the United States while identifying themselves as women athletes try and get into the Games.”

There was controversy surrounding gender eligibility at the Paris Olympics in July and August.

Boxers Imane Khelif of Algeria and Lin Yu-ting of Taiwan won gold medals in women’s boxing. Both athletes had previously been disqualified from international competitions for failing gender eligibility tests. However, the IOC and current President Thomas Bach voiced support for both athletes. The IOC also insisted that both athletes were biologically female.

Before that, Laurel Hubbard, a transgender woman, competed in weightlifting for the New Zealand team, and Canadian soccer player Quinn came out as nonbinary and transgender in 2020.

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With Bach preparing to leave office later this year, the IOC’s next president could help carry out Trump’s vision on the issue more cooperatively.

Former British Olympic champion Sebastian Coe is a candidate to be the next IOC president and has suggested he will take action to prevent transgender inclusion in women’s events.

Coe is the head of World Athletics, the governing body for international track and field competition. In 2023, the governing body tightened its regulations on transgender athletes to exclude transgender women who have gone through male puberty from competing in the female category. That regulation also lowered the maximum testosterone level for eligible female competitors.

President Donald Trump signs an executive order barring transgender female athletes from competing in women’s or girls sporting events in the East Room of the White House Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Coe said if he becomes IOC president, the new Olympic policy on transgender inclusion will “probably” reflect the one he has established in World Athletics. Coe has also said the controversy surrounding Khelif and Yu-ting made him feel “uncomfortable.”

The United Nations released study findings saying nearly 900 biological females have fallen short of winning medals because they lost to transgender athletes.

The study, “Violence against women and girls in sports,” said more than 600 athletes did not medal in more than 400 competitions in 29 different sports, totaling over 890 medals, according to information obtained up to March 30.

“The replacement of the female sports category with a mixed-sex category has resulted in an increasing number of female athletes losing opportunities, including medals, when competing against males,” the report said.

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Jackson Thompson is a sports writer for Fox News Digital. He previously worked for ESPN and Business Insider. Jackson has covered the Super Bowl and NBA Finals, and has interviewed iconic figures Usain Bolt, Rob Gronkowski, Jerry Rice, Troy Aikman, Mike Trout, David Ortiz and Roger Clemens.

February 7, 2025
HUD directs agency to prohibit trans males from federally funded women-only shelters

On his first day in office, Eric Turner made a bold move as Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

He directed agency staff to suspend all pending and future enforcement actions related to the Obama-era Equal Access Rule, which required HUD-funded programs and shelters to determine eligibility based on a person’s self-identified gender.

Turner said that the move was part of President Donald Trump’s agenda to “restore biological truth to the federal government.”

“We want to protect the ladies entering any HUD facilities,” Turner told reporters Thursday, adding that he wants to “restore equal rights, but no extra rights.” The Secretary added that most of the females who utilize HUD shelters already come from domestic violence situations, and he wants to ensure that their tragedies are not exacerbated when they turn to the federal government for help.

TRUMP’S PICK AS HUD SECRETARY, A FORMER NFL PLAYER, SAYS HE WANTS TO HELP AMERICANS GET OFF GOVERNMENT AID

Trump’s newly confirmed HUD Secretary Eric Turner is rescinding rules prohibiting federally funded shelters from asking for proof of someone’s biological gender.

Turner’s directive follows Trump’s Day One executive order terminating federal diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives and mandating the federal government only recognize two genders, male and female. This week, Trump signed an executive order preventing biological males who identify as females from competing on women’s sports teams, as well as another prohibiting minors from receiving puberty blockers or transition surgery.

Under the 2016 Equal Access Rule that Turner is rescinding, homeless shelters, domestic violence shelters and other federally funded HUD-assisted housing programs were prohibited from requiring people to prove they are biologically female. Following Turner’s directive, this will no longer be prohibited.

President Donald Trump signs the No Men in Women’s Sports Executive Order into law in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 5, 2025. (ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP)

In 2018, nine California women filed a lawsuit against a local women’s shelter in Fresno, which operates with public funds, for allegedly forcing them to take showers alongside a biological male who identified as a woman and who they claimed sexually harassed them.

15 STATE AGs VOW TO PROTECT TRANS PROCEDURES FOR MINORS DESPITE TRUMP EXECUTIVE ORDER

Last year, police in Greenville, South Carolina, arrested a transgender woman, Michelle Silva Perez, for stabbing a shelter employee after Perez was admitted to the emergency shelter meant only for women and mothers. The facility, which receives both state and federal funding, said it would have acted differently if it had known that the suspect was not a biological woman.

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A protester holds a placard outside of the Pennsylvania Capitol this week during a 50501 Movement protesting the Trump administration’s policies aimed at transgender folks.

Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment but did not receive a response by publication time.

February 6, 2025
NCAA officially bans trans athletes from women’s sports 1 day after Trump signs executive order

The NCAA has officially changed its gender eligibility policies to ban all biological males from women’s sports one day after President Donald Trump signed an executive order to address the issue.

The governing body of college sports announced on Thursday afternoon its new participation policy for transgender student-athletes.

“A student-athlete assigned male at birth may not compete on a women’s team,” the new policy reads.

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The previous policy, which had been in place in 2010, allowed biological males to compete in the women’s category after undergoing at least one year of testosterone suppression treatment.

Trump signed the “No Men in Women’s Sports” executive order in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D..C., in front of female athletes on National Girls & Women in Sports Day on Wednesday.

NCAA President Charlie Baker responded to the executive order in a statement later on Wednesday, saying it provided a “clear, national standard,” and that the NCAA Board of Governors would review it and take steps to align the organization’s policy in the coming days.

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“The NCAA is an organization made up of 1,100 colleges and universities in all 50 states that collectively enroll more than 530,000 student-athletes,” the statement said. “We strongly believe that clear, consistent and uniform eligibility standards would best serve today’s student-athletes instead of a patchwork of conflicting state laws and court decisions. To that end, President Trump’s order provides a clear, national standard.

“The NCAA Board of Governors is reviewing the executive order and will take necessary steps to align NCAA policy in the coming days, subject to further guidance from the administration. The Association will continue to help foster welcoming environments on campuses for all student-athletes. We stand ready to assist schools as they look for ways to support any student-athletes affected by changes in the policy.”

Baker previously addressed concerns over the issue of female athletes having to share teams and locker rooms with trans athletes during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing in December. There, Baker insisted that female athletes have the option to find other accommodations if they’re uncomfortable sharing with transgenders and that the NCAA’s policies that allow trans athletes to compete against women are based on federal standards.

HOW TRANSGENDERISM IN SPORTS SHIFTED THE 2024 ELECTION AND IGNITED A NATIONAL COUNTERCULTURE

The previous policy has resulted in multiple lawsuits against the NCAA and its member schools. Former NCAA swimmer and current conservative activist Riley Gaines is currently leading a lawsuit over her experience of having to compete with and share a locker room with trans swimmer Lia Thomas at the 2022 national championships. She is joined by several other women athletes who have also been affected by trans inclusion.

Another lawsuit was filed Tuesday evening, when three of Thomas’ former UPenn teammates came forward with their own experiences of having to share a team and locker room with Thomas and were allegedly gaslit by their university administrators and fed pro-trans ideology.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM

A recent New York Times/Ipsos survey found the vast majority of Americans, including a majority of Democrats, don’t think transgender athletes should be permitted to compete in women’s sports. Of the 2,128 people polled, 79% said biological males who identify as women should not be allowed to participate in women’s sports.

Of the 1,025 people who identified as Democrats or leaning Democrat, 67% said transgender athletes should not be allowed to compete with women.

Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.

Jackson Thompson is a sports writer for Fox News Digital. He previously worked for ESPN and Business Insider. Jackson has covered the Super Bowl and NBA Finals, and has interviewed iconic figures Usain Bolt, Rob Gronkowski, Jerry Rice, Troy Aikman, Mike Trout, David Ortiz and Roger Clemens.

February 6, 2025
Trump Education Dept to probe SJSU, UPenn for potential Title IX violations after trans athlete scandals

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EXCLUSIVE: President Donald Trump’s Department of Education (DOE) launched an investigation into potential Title IX violations that occurred at multiple educational institutions, hours after he signed an executive order to ban trans athletes from women’s sports.

The Department’s Office of Civil Rights (OCR) will be investigating San Jose State University, the University of Pennsylvania and the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) for separate incidents involving trans athletes competing on a women’s or girls’ sports team.

“Pursuant to President Trump’s Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports Executive Order yesterday, the U.S. Department of Education today announced investigations into two educational institutions and an athletic association where violations of Title IX have been reported,” read a statement from the DOE provided exclusively to Fox News Digital.

“President Trump’s Executive Order ‘Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports’ is a promise to women and girls: this administration will not tolerate the mistreatment of female athletes.”

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President Donald Trump signs the No Men in Women’s Sports Executive Order into law in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 5, 2025. (ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP)

The incidents at San Jose State and UPenn became widely-publicized controversies that resulted in multiple lawsuits.

At UPenn, transgender swimmer Lia Thomas was allowed to compete on the women’s swim team after previously competing on the school’s men’s team. Thomas went on to break multiple women’s records, winning several events at the 2022 Ivy League championships and NCAA championships.

Former UPenn swimmer Paula Scanlan, who had to share a locker room with Thomas, provided a statement to Fox News Digital thanking the DOE for its forthcoming investigation.

“I’m deeply grateful to the Department of Education for addressing Title IX violations concerning female athletes with such seriousness. As a former University of Pennsylvania swimmer who was forced to compete against and share a locker room with a male athlete, I look forward to them holding accountable the higher education institutions that promoted this,” Scanlan said.

A lawsuit filed by three other former UPenn women’s swimmers alleges the university administrators and women’s swimming coach Mike Schnur misled the players about whether Thomas would be sharing a locker room with them. The three women also allege the school pushed pro-trans ideology onto them during the process of accepting Thomas on the team, and they were led to feel their concerns over being teammates with a biological male was rooted in a “psychological problem.”

“The UPenn administrators told the women that if anyone was struggling with accepting Thomas’s participation on the UPenn Women’s team, they should seek counseling and support from CAPS and the LBGTQ center,” the lawsuit alleges.

“The administrators also invited the women to a talk titled, ‘Trans 101.’ Thus, the women were led to understand that UPenn’s position was that if a woman on the team had any problem with a trans-identifying male being on her team that woman had a psychological problem and needed counseling.”

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Former University of Kentucky swimmer and current conservative activist Riley Gaines has also filed a lawsuit against the NCAA for its current gender identity polices over her experience competing alongside Thomas at the 2022 NCAA championships. Several other women impacted by trans inclusion have joined Gaines’ lawsuit.

Fox News Digital has reached out to UPenn for comment.

At San Jose State, transgender volleyball player Blaire Fleming played three seasons on the women’s team from 2022-24, as one of the Mountain West’s top hitters, leading the team in kills. However, unlike UPenn’s handling of Thomas, SJSU administrators allegedly withheld the truth about Fleming’s birth sex from the other female players on the team, according to a lawsuit filed by 11 Mountain West volleyball players and a former SJSU assistant coach.

Former Spartans co-captain Brooke Slusser leads that lawsuit and is also a plaintiff in Gaines’ lawsuit against the NCAA. Slusser alleges San Jose State administrators and volleyball coach Todd Kress actively prevented her from knowing Fleming’s birth sex while assigning her to share bedrooms with the trans athlete on most road trips during their first season together in 2023.

Slusser’s lawsuit against the Mountain West also alleges that Fleming conspired with an opponent on another team to have Slusser spiked in the face during a match on Oct. 3.

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The controversy involving Fleming prompted five of SJSU’s opponents in 2024 to forfeit a total of eight matches. The final forfeit was the Mountain West Tournament semifinal against Boise State, who had already forfeited twice to the Spartans in the regular season.

That forfeit sent Fleming, Slusser and SJSU to the conference final, where they lost to Colorado State. The plaintiffs in Slusser’s lawsuit filed an emergency injunction in November prior to the tournament in an attempt to have Fleming removed from competition and all losses by forfeit wiped from their opponents’ records. However, federal Judge Kato Crews, who was appointed by then-President Joe Biden in January 2024, ruled to allow Fleming to play.

Fox News Digital has reached out to San Jose State for comment.

The situation involving the MIAA occurred in February 2024, when a trans athlete for the KIPP Academy Lynn girl’s basketball team caused injuries to female players for Collegiate Charter School of Lowell. Collegiate Charter had to forfeit the game at halftime for the sake of the well-being of its players.

The MIAA’s handbook states that a “student shall not be excluded from participation on a gender-specific sports team that is consistent with the student’s bona fide gender identity.”

Fox News Digital has reached out to the MIAA and Kipp Academy for comment.

Now, all three of those institutions face an investigation by Trump’s DOE.

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President Donald Trump’s Department of Education launched an investigation into potential Title IX violations that occurred at multiple educational institutions, hours after he signed an executive order to ban trans athletes from women’s sports. (Getty Images)

Additionally, the OCR will be actively reviewing athletic participation policies at a number of schools to evaluate their alignment with Title IX protections for female athletes, sources told Fox News Digital.

Last week, the DOE notified K-12 schools and higher education institutions of a return to enforcing Title IX protections on the basis of biological sex.

The NCAA has already suggested it will capitulate to Trump’s order.

NCAA President Charlie Baker responded to the executive order in a statement, saying it provided a “clear, national standard,” and the NCAA Board of Governors would review it and take steps to align the organization’s policy in the coming days.

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February 6, 2025
Feds spent millions studying trans menstruation, strengthening gay rights in the Balkans, database reveals

FIRST ON FOX: The federal government under the Biden administration doled out more than $174 million in grants and contracts to promote “radical ideas” on gender ideology, including to study menstrual cycles in transgender men and to “shield” the gay community in the Western Balkans, a new database dubbed ”Funding Insanity” found.

“When Americans pay their taxes every year, they expect that money to go towards projects that help them: strengthening our national defense, building and upgrading infrastructure, protecting our natural resources, etc.,” American Principles Project President Terry Schilling said in a statement provided to Fox News Digital.

“However, in recent years Democrats have been using public funds to instead push their radical gender agenda here at home and around the world,” he said. “Hundreds of millions of dollars have been squandered on programs promoting the idea that human biology doesn’t matter. Nothing could better exemplify the disgusting corruption that has taken hold of Washington.”

The American Principles Project, a conservative nonprofit that bills itself as “America’s Top Defender of the Family,” published a new database Thursday morning called “Funding Insanity,” which details various initiatives — both domestic and abroad — that received hundreds of thousands of dollars from the federal government to promote left-wing gender ideology.

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President Donald Trump and Elon Musk (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)

The funds examined by the AAP were doled out across the past four years under the Biden administration.

In one of the priciest examples on AAP’s database, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) obligated $1,929,783 to the American Bar Association as part of a mission to “shield” members of “the LGBTQI+ population in the Western Balkans” by “strengthening human rights, information integrity, equality, and democracy.”

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The Western Balkans includes nations such as Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro and Albania. The Balkans region overwhelmingly does not recognize gay marriage, though nations such as Montenegro recognize “life partnerships” between gay couples.

A protester holds a sign reading, “Homosexuality is not a choice, hate is a choice,” in Croatia. (Getty Images)

The grant began on Oct. 1, 2024, and was set to run until Sept. 30. The Trump administration, however, paused foreign assistance in January, and USAID is in the midst of an apparent dismantling at the hands of the Department of Government Efficiency.

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In another example, the Department of Agriculture granted $600,000 to Southern University A&M in Louisiana to study menstrual cycles, including for transgender men and nonbinary people.

The Department of Agriculture granted $600,000 to Southern University A&M in Louisiana to study menstrual cycles, including for transgender men and nonbinary people. (Getty Images)

“The first occurrence of menstruation occurs at approximately 12 years of age and ends with menopause at roughly 51 years of age,” the description for the grant states. “A woman will have a monthly menstrual cycle for about 40 years of her life averaging to about 450 periods over the course of her lifetime.

“It is also important to recognize that transgender men and people with masculine gender identities, intersex and non-binary persons may also menstruate,” it continues. “At any given moment about 26% of the world’s population is menstruating.”

The grant began in April 2024 and is described as a study to “address the growing concerns and issues surrounding menstruation,” including the use of natural fibers, such as hemp, for feminine hygiene products.

Fox News Digital reached out to the university and the American Bar Association regarding these respective grants but did not immediately receive replies.

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The Department of Agriculture spent an additional $229,637 to a natural resource management firm on contracts for “Brazil Forest and gender consultant services,” according to the database.

Gender consultants in forestry services work to promote gender-equality and women’s empowerment in the industry. The forestry contract began on Jan 15, 2024, and ended in January, a review of its award profile shows.

The Department of Agriculture spent an additional $229,637 to a natural resource management firm on contracts for “Brazil Forest and gender consultant services.” (Getty Images)

The State Department, in another example, spent nearly $25,000 in funds to “miscellaneous” foreign groups to premiere a theater production of “The Vagina Monologues” translated to the Gujarati language in India.

“To support social change towards women empowerment and ending gender-based violence through theatre, world premier of the Vagina Monologues in Gujarati language in Mumbai and Ahmedabad,” the description of the grant reads.

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“The Vagina Monologues” is a feminist play that first premiered in the U.S. in 1996 that focuses on personal monologues involving topics such as rape, menstrual periods, genital mutilation and prostitution.

In another pricey grant, USAID sent $1,065,702 to a Bangladesh welfare group to “support gender diverse people (gdp) through the new shomota (a Bangla word meaning “equality” in English),” the description for the grant reads.

Another State Department grant delivered $2,315 to a nongovernmental agency in Nepal to teach English to “professional transgender women makeup entrepreneurs.”

The State Department grant delivered $2,315 to a nongovernmental agency in Nepal to teach English to “professional transgender women makeup entrepreneurs.” (Getty Images)

Schilling continued in his statement provided to Fox Digital that “corruption” involving the federal government using taxpayer funds for left-wing gender initiatives “is finally coming to an end.”

In November 2024, “the American people gave Donald Trump a clear mandate to drain the swamp, and since taking office he has acted decisively to do so along with Elon Musk and the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency,” he said. “We hope President Trump, Musk and DOGE will find this information useful as they work to root out the far left’s ideological waste and instead return our government to its true purpose: service for the good of all Americans.”

Musk and his team of auditors at DOGE are poring through federal databases to identify overspending, fraud and corruption, with their main focus right now involving USAID.

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Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Monday that he is now the acting director of USAID. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein/Pool)

Secretary of State Marco Rubio reported on Monday that he is now the acting director of USAID, telling the media that the agency needs to be brought in line with Trump’s “America First” policies, which include heightened scrutiny over the distribution of taxpayer funds overseas.

USAID’s website, since Tuesday evening, notifies readers that staff would be placed on leave globally, except “designated personnel responsible for mission-critical functions, core leadership and specially designated programs.”

Democrat lawmakers have slammed the Trump administration’s apparent dismantling of the agency and targeting of other agencies, such as the Treasury Department, including holding protests in Washington, D.C.

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“This is the most corrupt bargain we’ve ever seen in American history: Elon Musk gives $250 million to elect Donald Trump, and Donald Trump turns over the keys to United States government to Elon Musk and his billionaire friends and his cronies,” Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., said during a protest outside the Treasury Department in Washington on Tuesday.

“Are we going to let that stand? Hell no, we are not going to let that stand,” Van Hollen added, later vowing, “We have to fight this in the courts, we have to fight this in the Congress, we have to fight this in the streets. We need to fight this all over America.”

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt slammed such rhetoric as attempts to “incite violence” during a press conference on Wednesday.

Elon Musk is leading the Department of Government Efficiency. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

“It’s unacceptable, the comments that have been made by these Democrat leaders, and frankly, they don’t even know what they’re talking about because President Trump was elected with a mandate from the American people to make this government more efficient,” Leavitt responded.

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“He campaigned across this country with Elon Musk, vowing that Elon was going to head up the Department of Government Efficiency and the two of them with a great team around them were going to look at the receipts of this federal government and ensure it’s accountable to American taxpayers. That’s all that is happening here,” Leavitt continued. “And for Democrat officials to incite violence and encourage Americans to take to the streets is incredibly alarming, and they should be held accountable for that rhetoric.”

February 6, 2025
Former NFL star Shaun Alexander supports Trump’s plan to ban trans athletes from girls and women’s sports

Former NFL star running back Shaun Alexander has taken a position on the debate over trans inclusion in girls and women’s sports.

The three-time Pro Bowler expressed his support for President Donald Trump’s executive order banning trans inclusion against females, during an interview on “The Ricky Cobb Show” on Wednesday. Alexander cited his experience as a father to nine daughters for his stance on the issue.

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Seattle running back Shaun Alexander runs past Washington defenders at FedEx Field in Landover, Maryland. (Steve Deslich/MCT/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

“I think it’s a good thing,” Alexander said of Trump’s executive order. “My daughters train so hard… for them to train so hard to get to where they are and then to see people who have genetics, they have younger brothers who can compete with them already and they’re 14, so you know, if you’re the same age competing with a boy, that’s just hard, just body structure alone is just hard. So I’m really happy for all the girls.

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Super Bowl LIX will be streamed on Tubi. (Tubi)

“For anything to give an advantage besides hard work is something that would just be crushing for any young lady.”

Alexander’s stance aligns with the vast majority of Americans on the issue, according to data.

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Former Seahawks running back Shaun Alexander during the team’s game against the Green Bay Packers on Nov. 15, 2018, at CenturyLink Field in Seattle. (Lawrence Iles/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

A recent New York Times/Ipsos survey found the vast majority of Americans, including a majority of Democrats, don’t think transgender athletes should be permitted to compete in women’s sports. Of the 2,128 people polled, 79% said biological males who identify as women should not be allowed to participate in women’s sports.

Of the 1,025 people who identified as Democrats or leaning Democrat, 67% said transgender athletes should not be allowed to compete with women.

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Jackson Thompson is a sports writer for Fox News Digital. He previously worked for ESPN and Business Insider. Jackson has covered the Super Bowl and NBA Finals, and has interviewed iconic figures Usain Bolt, Rob Gronkowski, Jerry Rice, Troy Aikman, Mike Trout, David Ortiz and Roger Clemens.

February 5, 2025