Trump administration gives California ultimatum over banning transgender athletes from high school sports

Daily Mail​

2 days ago

Donald Trump 's Department of Justice has fired a massive broadside against school districts in ' woke ' Democratic California amid escalating fury over trans athletes born boys competing against girls.
The firestorm has flared after AB Hernandez, 16, a biological male who identifies as a girl, crushed female teen rivals in a competition over the weekend.
The high school junior took gold medals in the high jump and triple jump at the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) state finals held on May 30 and 31 at Buchanan High School in Clovis, 13 miles north of Fresno.
Hernandez, of Jurupa Valley in Riverside County, 60 miles east of Los Angeles, regularly - and unsurprisingly - trounces their female rivals.
The latest victories follow Trump's fuming online attacks against Hernandez, trans athletes in girls' sports and California Governor Gavin Newsom, a favorite target of his ire.
In February, he signed the 'Keep Men Out of Women's Sports' executive order.
Now the Civil Rights Division of the DoJ is gunning for the California Interscholastic Federation - the state's governing body for high school sports - and the use of 'unconstitutional' Bylaw 300.D in state schools that permits trans boys to compete against girls.
It has come out swinging, demanding that school districts in the Golden State ignore the controversial statute.
The districts have been given a seven-day deadline of June 9 to inform DoJ officials of their response - and the clock is ticking towards a showdown.
Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhilon wrote to state school districts in a Monday, June 2 letter:
'As a member of the California Interscholastic Federation ('CIF'), and a political subdivision of the State of California, you are exposed to legal liability due to a policy CIF has enacted that violates federal law.
'CIF Bylaw 300.D requires California public high schools to allow male participation in girls' interscholastic athletics: 'All students should have the opportunity to participate in CIF activities in a manner that is consistent with their gender identify, irrespective of the gender listed on the student's records.' (emphasis added). Section 300.D, however, is facially unconstitutional.
'The Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex.
'Knowingly depriving female students of athletic opportunities and benefits on the basis of their sex would constitute unconstitutional sex discrimination under the Equal Protection Clause.
'Scientific evidence shows that upsetting the historical status quo and forcing girls to compete against males would deprive them of athletic opportunities and benefits because of their sex.
'Therefore, you cannot implement a policy allowing males to compete alongside girls, because such a policy would deprive girls of athletic opportunities and benefits bases solely on their biological sex, in violation of the Equal Protection Clause.'
The letter continues, 'As a political subdivision, you have the obligation to comply with the Equal Protection Clause.
'To ensure compliance and avoid legal liability, you must certify in writing by 5:00p.m. ET on June 9, 2025, that you will not implement CIF Bylaw 300.D.'
Sonja Shaw, Board President of the Chino Valley Unified School District, which is adjacent to the Jurupa Valley School District, told Daily Mail in a statement in response to the DoJ's letter: 'Newsom and the political cartel, the majority of legislators, the California Dept of Education, and CIF…you're going to lose.
'We told you we'd win this for our daughters and we will. That's a promise - it's only a matter of time!
'You sold out their privacy in locker rooms to push your sick agenda. Boys are boys. Girls are girls.
'The DoJ just called your CIF bylaw what it is - unconstitutional.
'We're not playing games. We won't back down. We won't forget. You're on the wrong side of history. Lawsuits are coming. Investigation. It's all coming down.'
In an exclusive interview with Daily Mail over the weekend, conservative women's advocate Riley Gaines branded Hernandez's mother 'evil' for enabling her child.
And she condemned 'progressives' in 'woke' Democratic California and Newsom - who she dubbed a 'slimy car salesman' and 'spineless coward' - for enabling biologically born boys to participate in sports alongside girls.
She also called out 'crazy unhinged trans activists' for creating chaos.
Gaines hit headlines in 2022 as a competitive swimmer for University of Kentucky in the 200-yard NCAA freestyle championship against University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas, a biological male who lives as a woman.
She said of Hernandez's mother, Nereyda Hernandez, 43, 'His mom is a pretty evil person,' Gaines declared.
'I believe she is using her son to live out some fantasy or dream that maybe she had.
'She has lied to AB in affirming his identity - the total façade - and in the process has harmed real women.
'I have empathy for AB. He's a victim as well. But that doesn't give him the right to trample on women in the process to fulfill his happiness.
'AB Hernandez is of course not the first boy to compete in the state of California - whether it's track and field, whatever sport it may be,' commented Gaines.
'He is following the rules. So I don't have any animosity or hatred or wish any sort of ill will on the boy. Ultimately, it's the rules that are the problem.
The mother posted social media following Trump's breathless take down last week.
'My child is not a threat; SHE IS LIGHT!!! As AB's mother, I will continue to stand by her, proudly fiercely, and unconditionally,' she wrote.
In a post on X, Shaw wrote: 'We Told You We'd Win This Fight for Our Girls And It's Going to Happen sooner than later!!
'Today, the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division issued a letter declaring CIF Bylaw 300D unconstitutional.
'This dangerous bylaw forced schools to allow biological males to compete in girls' sports and access private spaces.
'But the DOJ made it clear: 'This policy would deprive girls of athletic opportunities and benefits based solely on their biological sex.'
'Districts are now legally liable if they implement this insanity. They have until June 9 to certify that they will not enforce CIF Bylaw 300D — or face consequences.
'This is a historic win. A win for truth. A win for parents. A win for our daughters. A win for our nation.
'Common sense is finally making a comeback. And thank God we finally have a federal agency that isn't weaponized against parents and our daughters, but is standing with us to protect basic rights.
'We told you we are not playing games. We will not comply with insanity. We will not forget that Newsom sued our district and signed a law that took parents' constitutional rights away.
'We will not bend. We will not compromise. We will protect our daughters at all costs. The tide is turning. The silence is broken. And we are just getting started.'
Greg Burt, Vice President of the California Family Council, said in a statement: 'We welcome this bold step by the U.S. Department of Justice. For too long, California's education system has prioritized gender ideology over the physical safety and competitive fairness of young women.
'It's time our schools return to truth, biology, and the equal protection of all students under the law.'