Justice Department: Trans Athletes Aren't Girls

High school athletes who were born biologically male shouldn't compete against girls just because they identify as female, says the Justice Department. The department has weighed in on an ongoing federal lawsuit about the question, reports the AP. A group of high school girls in Connecticut filed the suit, arguing it's unfair they have to go up against trans athletes. On Tuesday, the Justice Department said the girls have a point, citing "the real physiological differences between men and women." The issue is that the state athletic conference has decreed that athletes can compete as the gender with which they identify.

The conference says its position syncs with Title IX, the law meant to make sure female school athletes have the same opportunities as males, but the Justice Department disagrees. The position actually "deprives those women of the single-sex athletic competitions that are one of the marquee accomplishments of Title IX," per its newly released "statement of interest" in the case. If the girls prevail, the decision could void previous victories by trans athletes and set a precedent for school districts around the nation, notes Bleacher Report. (More transgender stories.)