Why Protecting Girls’ Spaces Should Never Be Up For Debate

Men and women are different. This biological reality was once universally understood. Now, however, radical activists are trying to bully women into believing that merely a public declaration of your gender makes you a woman. Thankfully, we are coming to a tipping point. More and more brave, strong, authentic women are rising to the bizarre challenge of our day.

Women like Stephanie Turner. At a collegiate fencing competition last weekend, she removed her mask and took a knee before her bout, refusing to compete against a male who had competed on the men’s team just a year earlier. USA Fencing responded by immediately disqualifying and expelling Turner from the tournament. Turner’s decision to stand up and publicly shoulder this fight required immense strength. Strength that her male counterpart didn’t possess, or he’d still be training to succeed is his own division.

It’s the same kind of strength Maine Representative Laurel Libby showed when she spoke out against the injustice of a biological male student dominating girls’ pole vault at the Maine State Class B Championship. The student had previously placed fifth in the boys’ division just one year before. Like Turner, Libby’s refusal to go along with the gender activists’ takeover was met with punishment. When she tried to defend herself, the male Democratic Speaker of the House, Ryan Fecteau, cut her microphone and shut down the live feed. Libby stood before the dais with a stoic strength. Strength her male Democratic counterpart didn’t possess, or he’d be able to defend his position on the merits.

Oddly, the same people who silenced Laurel Libby, who disqualified Stephanie Turner, who took a medal from Riley Gaines, and who named MJ Rodriguez “woman of the year,” are the same individuals who scream about feminism. These are the same “feminists” who think my daughters should change their swimsuits beside men at the YMCA.

To the “feminists” who cannot define a woman, anyone can be a woman, so everyone is a woman. Those who don’t nod their head, put pronouns in the email signature, and quietly follow along are bullied like the women above.

Thankfully, Turner and Libby aren’t so easily intimidated. They add their names to a growing list of strong women undeterred by the powerful forces who seek to take their voices away. Each woman who stands up makes a difference, especially for the generation of girls behind them. Though these brave acts may seem small in isolation, together they cannot and will not be ignored.

Turner and Libby are two women at the forefront of a fight that should have never needed to be fought. It’s a sad reality that defending the very concept of womanhood has become a radical act, but it is that radical act by these women who are inspiring others to stand up unapologetically and demand girls’ spaces be returned to them. And parents, we must continue to do our part in our towns, schools, and local sports leagues.

Girls’ spaces should be sacred, and their rights should not be subject to ideological whims. We must ensure that the next generation of girls grow up knowing they deserve a world where they are protected and respected.

While this fight is far from over, these women have set the stage for the movement afoot to take hold. Parents across the country are stepping forward at school board meetings and standing up to the governing boards of local sports leagues. We must continue to harness this momentum to protect our daughters and reaffirm the biological reality that somehow slipped from the cultural collective sense.

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Alleigh Marré is the Executive Director of the American Parents Coalition and a mother of four.

The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.