Prof. Doriane Lambelet Coleman (Duke) on Women's Sports and Transgender Questions

Prof. Doriane Lambelet Coleman (Duke Law School) kindly blogged for us in early 2019 on how transgender competitors should be treated in women's sports; she is the author of Sex in Sport, a law review article on that very subject. Since the topic continues to be in the news (for instance, in light of the Lia Thomas / Penn swimming controversy), I thought I'd repost that series, with a few updates from Prof. Coleman in light of recent developments.

I'd also love to link to or post views on the other side of the question; I've asked some colleagues for recommendations of people who might participate, but if you folks have any suggestions, I'd love to see them.

Comments

[JonFrum]

I don't need to read the article. Women's sports are for women. Not people who think they're women. Not people who dress like women. Women. There 's no need for any other discussion. To go any further is to engage in madness, and I am not mad.

[DaivdBehar]

That is reality. All PC is case. The lawyer profession is 100% at fault for this ridiculous state of affairs. If an asskicking is warranted, it is for the judges imposing their sicko views on our children. The trannies are mentally ill and delusional. Nothing will influence them. The schools want to avoid ruinous litigation and to stay out of trouble. The asskicking should be reserved for the rent seeking, judges indulging this litigation. They are criminals, and should be driven out.

[Sarcastr0]

'I've already made up my mind, and nothing can change that. Because that's how sanity works.'

[Alpheus W Drinkwater]

I'm sure that before we read anything Prof. Coleman has to say, we could go ahead and write what almost every regular commenter here is going to say. And most of it won't have anything to do with what she's actually saying.

[Peter Gerdes]

I would note that the arguments advanced here recently against the inclusion of trans-women seem to all be missing an explanation of why it's more preferable to limit certain sport competitions to one group rather than another. It's not enough to simply note that members of the previously qualified (cis-women) competitors might find themselves disadvantaged or pushed out.

That proves far too much as it would equally well show that it was unfair to white sprinters to let black sprinters compete in the same races (which they now completely dominate). Besides, virtually all women already are so disadvantaged by virtue of not having the rare combo of genes/body type and opportunity that would let them have any chance at victory.

This isn't your say the argument fails. One can make a decent case that there are psychological reasons why cis-women won't see trans-women as enough like them to identify with and be inspired/entertained. However, I think it's important to acknowledge you have to somehow break the symetry between the two groups. Moreover, this does mean the question is ultimately empirical and we need to look at how women (esp young girls) react to trans-women Victor's.

[Peter Gerdes]

Ohh forgot the main thing: but I've certainly enjoyed reading these arguments this week.