Newsom faces pushback for comments on transgender athletes in female sports
Los Angeles LGBTQ+ advocates responded Thursday to comments made by California Gov. Gavin Newsom telling conservative commentator Charlie Kirk that it is unfair for trans female athletes to be competing in women’s sports.
Los Angeles LGBT Center CEO Joe Hollendoner said in a statement that his organization is “outraged” by the comments.
“Newsom is parroting the same Republican talking points used to marginalize and erase trans people,” Hollendoner said in a statement March 6. “This is an appalling betrayal from someone who once positioned himself as a champion of equality, and demonstrated such strong leadership on behalf of LGBTQ+ people during the first Trump Administration.”
Newsom told Kirk that “it’s deeply unfair” for transgender women to compete in female sports on the first episode of his new podcast “This is Gavin Newsom.”
“I think it’s an issue of fairness, I completely agree with you on that,” Newsom said after Kirk asked if he would ban trans women from female sports.
Newsom added that he has a problem with the rhetoric surrounding the issue.
“There’s also a humility and grace that these poor people are more likely to commit suicide and have anxiety and depression and the way that people talk down to vulnerable communities is an issue that I have a hard time with as well.”
Hollendoner called Newsom’s comments hypocritical, considering California has laws protecting trans people from playing school sports and providing gender-affirming care for children in foster care. Assembly Bill 1266, passed in 2013, allows transgender athletes to play on a sports team that aligns with their gender identity.
“We won’t tolerate leaders who turn their backs on our community,” Hollendoner. “We demand that Governor Newsom immediately apologize for the harm he has caused, meet with transgender advocates to educate himself on this important issue, and prove that he is aligned with the LGBTQ+ community and not Trump’s hate-mongering.
“Gov. Newsom must decide if he truly is an ally, or just another politician willing to sacrifice our community to pursue their own political aspirations.”
Assemblymember Chris Ward, who leads the California Legislative LGBTQ Caucus said that the comments were emblematic of “regressive MAGA Republican narrative and talking points.”
In a statement by Ward and Senator Caroline Menjivar, the vice chair of the caucus, they wrote that these remarks left them “profoundly sickened.”
“All students deserve the academic and health benefits of sports activity, and until Donald Trump began obsessing about it, playing on a team consistent with one’s gender has not been a problem since the standard was passed in 2013,” they wrote March 6.
Cyd Zeigler, the co-editor of outsports.com, a publication on LGBTQ issues in sports, said that Newsom’s comments were not about legitimate questions on fairness, but about his future political aspirations.
“Gavin Newsom wants to run for president, he wants to be president, and he is trying to win a handful of votes in Iowa so he can get the nomination,” Zeigler said.
Republican Assemblymember Bill Essayli wrote on X and called on Newsom to support legislation that would prevent biological males from competing in women’s sports.
“This is stunning,” Essayli wrote. “Talk is cheap @GavinNewsom. Why don’t you support my bill AB 844 to reverse CA’s law allowing boys to compete in girls sports? You’re the Governor, not a commentator!”