Utah State University recently announced that its women’s volleyball team would not play a scheduled Oct. 23 match against San Jose State University, joining three other colleges — the University of Wyoming, Boise State University and Southern Utah University — in forfeiting.
The reason? A possible transgender player on the SJSU team.
It should be noted that the woman in question has not spoken publicly, and was outed without her consent through a lawsuit filed by one of her teammates. As many queer people will tell you, this is a massive breach of privacy and could put her in real danger.
One can gather that the true motives behind the forfeitures are rooted in transphobia. Unfortunately, this is a growing problem, one assisted by high-profile bigots spouting their rhetoric to all who will listen, as well as a growing number of transphobic policies such as bathroom bills and sporting bans peddled by right-wing politicians across the United States.
These game cancellations are just another manifestation of a deep-rooted problem – not just in our country, but across the world.
Trans individuals have a seriously elevated risk of suicide due to the hostile environments they are forced to endure, as well as a heightened risk of being victims of hate crimes.
Why, then, do we as a society persist in our bigotry? The young woman whose mere presence on the SJSU volleyball team led to all this furor had been playing women’s sports since high school without any issue.
Now she’s been thrust into the spotlight against her will simply because some people can’t live and let live. I dearly hope she finds peace and acceptance, and I’ll be rooting for her.
For those who want to show their support, SJSU will continue to play with other universities. Attending their games and cheering this young woman on would show that there are people out there who support her.
