Richland City Council supports letter addressing transgender athletes’ participation in girls’ sports

In southeastern Washington, the Richland City Council approved signing a letter addressing the participation of transgender athletes in girls’ and women’s sports.

The council discussed the letter at the request of Jerrod MacPherson, a county administrator for Benton County. MacPherson emailed the mayors of Richland, Kennewick, Pasco and West Richland as well as the commissioners of Franklin county, asking for their support last month.

The Richland city council members voted 4 to 3 to sign the letter during its meeting on May 6. 

Benton County is leading an effort to send a “unified regional voice” on the matter to state legislators in the region, including representatives from the 8th, 9th, 14th, 15th and 16th legislative districts.

The council’s consideration of the letter generated a large turnout from the community.

“These physical advantages don’t disappear with hormones or identity. They’re built into the structure of our body, and that’s why women’s sports exist today,” Gina Richardson, a Richland resident, said.

Pat Holton, who also lives in Richland, shared that she grew up without girls’ sports at school. She expressed concerns about the future of sports for girls.

“I’ve seen the growth of women’s sports, I see the merit of women’s sports,” Holton said. “We need to preserve sports for girls and not have these sports taken away because that’s what will happen if men are allowed to play on girls’ teams.”

Another Richland resident, Cheyenne Brown, disagreed with the city’s decision to sign the letter.

“Trans children aren’t a threat. They’re students,” Brown said. “They’re teammates, and sports aren’t about domination.”

Tanya Beard, a retired nurse practitioner who specialized in child and family psychiatry,  said the letter “blocks access to opportunities for belonging,” for transgender children.

“The city council has a vested interest in protecting the integrity of girls’ sports, morally. It’s — I think — pretty ridiculous to think that boys don’t have a physical advantage over girls in sports,” Council member Ryan Whitten, who voted in favor of signing, said.

Kurt Maier, one of the council members opposing the decision, argues there isn’t a problem to solve given the small number of transgender athletes who would be excluded.  

“The city council has no dog in this hunt. Nobody’s asking us to regulate school sports,” Maier said.

“This is purely a cheerleading operation, which I encourage the council to support on their own time directly to the WIAA rather than spending county and city time on it,” he added. “I don’t think we should be signing this letter, any of us, because the quality of the letter is atrocious.”

This year, members of the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association, the state’s governing body of athletics and activities for middle and high schools, considered a proposal to limit participation in girls’ sports to “biological females.” It did not pass.

The organization also voted on another amendment to offer athletic programs “separately for boys, girls, and an open division for all students interested,” which received 13 votes in favor and 40 against.

Both proposals were “advisory vote only.” The WIAA said on its website that they wouldn’t be implemented under current state law even if they passed.

“The WIAA remains committed to following Washington state law and will continue to do so moving forward,” the WIAA website said. “If state law changes in the future, the WIAA Executive Board holds the authority to revise policies accordingly — and now has input from the membership on how to proceed in that event, while remaining in compliance with state law.”