'Stop it while we can': Caitlyn Jenner backs Nassau County's ban on trans athletes in female sports
NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: Caitlyn Jenner, Olympic gold medalist who is a trans woman herself, backed Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman's decision to ban trans athletes from female sports in a news conference in Mineola, New York, on Monday, March 18.
Blakeman appeared on 'Fox & Friends' with host Brian Kilmeade the following day to discuss how he gained the star's support and the legal challenges that still lay ahead of him.
Caitlyn Jenner's statement on trans athlete ban
Supporting Blakeman's executive order, Jenner stated, "You have to compete in the biological sex that you were born. This is critical to protecting the integrity of competition in women's sports."
The Fox News contributor also hit back at wokeness by saying, "My fear is that if this woke agenda that's out there… the DEI world that's out there, if this continues, it'll ruin women's sports over the next 10, 20 years. Let's stop it now while we can."
Bruce Blakeman's appearance on 'Fox & Friends'
Blakeman, who signed off on the ban on February 22, told Kilmeade, "We knew Caitlyn's position on the issue and that she supported my executive order, so we reached out to her and asked her if she would come to New York and join with us to show solidarity for the ban."
"And she was very gracious. She came to Nassau County yesterday. She laid out a very well-reasoned and articulate dissertation based on fact, why biological females should not have to compete against biological males. It's unsafe, it's unfair, and we want women to be able to play on a level playing field," Blakeman added.
New York Attorney General Letitia James issued a cease-and-desist order against the county on March 1, claiming that the ban was "discriminatory and transphobic." Later, the New York Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit on behalf of a women's roller derby team on similar grounds.
Blakeman responded to both on the show, stating, "Letitia James sent this cease and desist order to me, and, I reviewed it with my lawyers, and we decided to sue her. So we actually initiated a lawsuit in federal court in the Eastern District of New York to stop her from trying to enforce her cease and desist order."
"And then shortly thereafter, I was sued by the New York Civil Liberties Union and some... roller hockey team that wanted to have transgender biological males, compete against females," he added.
"We're very confident because women are a protected class under federal law. Since Title IX 50 years ago, the federal government has recognized that we have to have a level playing field for women," he continued.
