South Dakota House committee approves trans athlete ban

By STEPHEN GROVES
Associated Press

PIERRE, S.D. (AP) — A South Dakota House committee has approved a proposal from Republican Gov. Kristi Noem to ban transgender women and girls from competing in school sports leagues that match their gender identity. All 11 Republicans on the House State Affairs voted in favor of the bill. The governor has cast it as “protecting fairness in women’s sports.” But advocates for transgender people decried the proposal as bullying that would deprive them of an opportunity to compete and belong to a team. South Dakota could be the 10th Republican-controlled state to adopt such a ban on transgender women or girls.