‘Gutless Men’: Teen Athlete Blasts Washington State Democrats For Failing To Protect Girls’ Sports

Sixteen-year-old Washington state basketball player Frances Staudt has emerged as one of the most forceful young voices challenging the state’s Democratic leadership over policies she argues endanger girls’ sports and punish dissent.

After refusing to compete against a transgender player she described as a “quite obvious” male, Frances found herself under investigation by the Tumwater School District and the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association for “misgendering”—an action that prompted a federal civil-rights complaint on her behalf earlier this year.

The district, citing state law, insisted it would not “discriminate based on sexual identity” while acknowledging that families hold divergent views. But according to Frances, the message from school officials was far harsher: her concerns “did not matter,” and acknowledging biological sex was off-limits.

At a recent event supporting two “Let’s Go Washington” initiatives aimed at restoring protections for female athletes, Frances delivered a blistering speech accusing Washington’s highest Democratic officials of abandoning girls to ideological pressures. She described escalating social retaliation—public condemnation from staff, online harassment, threats against her family—and said adults privately expressed support but were too afraid to speak.

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Her criticism reached its apex in the passage below:

Let me end by saying this: Governor Ferguson, (state superintendent) Chris Reykdal, and (state attorney general) Nick Brown, we see right through you. And what we see is gutless men trying to stifle the voices of young women. I may be 16 years old, but I have way more guts than you’ll ever have.  We’re not going to stand for it anymore. I’m calling your bluff, and I’m exposing the lies that you tell over and over, and I refuse to share my locker room with the boys and men or be kicked out or punished for doing so. I will not be stopped, and what you’ve done to me is wrong.

Staudt called on voters and President Donald Trump to intervene, saying, “We need you, President Trump, to please put these out-of-touch politicians in their place and stop this nonsense. I won’t stop.  Thank you. I won’t stop, and I’m asking everyone listening to fight with me. Fight, fight, fight. We will not stand down.”

NEW: Tumwater High School girls basketball player Frances Staudt joined Let’s Go WA’25 signature gatherers in Issaquah, WA over the weekend.
Staudt is part of a growing movement in the state to ban biological boys from girls sports.
Here is her speech in full. ???????? https://t.co/49ygUZk4zE pic.twitter.com/w2X5S8Jkya

— Jonathan Choe (@choeshow) November 24, 2025