UPDATE AUGUST 19, 2022:
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Transgender kids in Utah will be not be subjected to sports participation limits at the start of the upcoming school year after a judge delayed the implementation of a statewide ban passed earlier this year. Judge Keith Kelly’s decision Friday (Aug. 19, 2022) to put the law on hold until a legal challenges is resolved came after he recently rejected a request by Utah state attorneys to dismiss the case. Most Utah schools students head back to classes this month. Attorneys representing the families of three transgender student-athletes filed the lawsuit challenging the ban last May, contending it violates the Utah Constitution’s guarantees of equal rights and due process. Similar cases are underway in states such as Idaho, West Virginia and Indiana.
UPDATE MARCH 25, 2022:
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Utah’s Republican lawmakers were preparing for a Friday (March 25, 2022) push to override Gov. Spencer Cox’s veto of legislation banning transgender youth athletes from playing on girls teams. A nationwide culture war is brewing over transgender issues. Cox was the second GOP governor this week to overrule state lawmakers on a sports-participation ban. His veto letter drew national attention with a poignant argument that such laws target vulnerable kids who already have high rates of suicide attempts. But 11 states have enacted similar bans, and they are a key topic for the party’s vocal conservative base. Still, there are also fears that a ban could prompt the NBA to move its February 2023 All-Star game from Salt Lake City.
MARCH 22, 2022:
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Utah’s Republican governor vetoed a ban on transgender students playing girls’ sports on Tuesday (March 22, 2022). The move was aimed at protecting vulnerable kids during a wave of similar legislation in nearly a dozen conservative-leaning states. The ban’s supporters announced they planned to convene lawmakers to try and override the veto on Friday. They argue transgender girls could eventually dominate and change the nature of girls sports. But advocates for transgender kids say banning the small group from competition would have little impact on sports while sending a wider, deeply painful message. Cox joins Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb, who vetoed a statewide ban on Monday.
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