Latest news with #ErichMartens
New York Post
3 days ago
- Sport
- New York Post
Minnesota high school defends trans softball pitcher's playoff dominance amid lawsuit
A high school softball team in Minnesota is deep in the state playoffs and the political news cycle, both thanks to its dominant transgender pitcher. Champlin Park High School in Minnesota defeated the defending state champions, Rogers High School, in the sectional final on Thursday by a score of 1-0. The trans pitcher threw 14 shutout innings, bringing the athlete's season ERA down to 0.88. Three anonymous players who claim to have faced the pitcher filed a lawsuit against the state on May 20 for allowing the athlete to compete against female players. The situation has prompted national scrutiny amid the ongoing political divide over biological males in girls' and women's sports. Champlin Park's school district provided a statement to Fox News Digital defending the decision to allow the athlete to compete on the softball team. 'Throughout the entire season, and as the Rebels advance to the state tournament, it is important to note that all of the student athletes participating for the Champlin Park Softball team are eligible to compete in compliance with Minnesota State High School League rules and applicable state law. Due to data privacy laws, the District is not able to provide public comment regarding a specific student athlete,' a statement from the Anoka-Hennepin School District stated. 'In addition, the District is named in an active lawsuit which limits what information can be shared.' 3 Champlin Park High School in Champlin, Minnesota. Google Maps 3 The Champlin Park High School softball field. Google Maps The pitcher will now lead Champlin Park into the state tournament next week for the first time in program history. The lawsuit against Minnesota was filed by the religious law firm Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF). The defendants are Attorney General Keith Ellison, the Minnesota State High School League Executive Director Erich Martens, Minnesota Department of Human Rights Commissioner Rebecca Lucero and Minnesota Commissioner of Education Willie Jett. 'Minnesota is failing its female athletes. The state is putting the rights of males ahead of females, telling girls their hard work may never be enough to win and that they don't deserve fairness and safety,' Alliance Defending Freedom Legal Counsel Suzanne Beecher told Fox News Digital. 'By sacrificing protection for female athletes, Minnesota fails to offer girls equal treatment and opportunity, violating Title IX's provisions. Our client, Female Athletes United, is right to stand up for its members by challenging the state's discriminatory policy and advocate for true equality in sports.' Ellison's office has responded to the lawsuit in a statement to Fox News Digital. 'In addition to getting exercise and the fun of competition, playing sports comes with so many benefits for young people. You build friendships that can last a lifetime, you learn how to work as part of a team, and you get to feel like you belong,' the statement read. 'I believe it is wrong to single out one group of students, who already face higher levels of bullying and harassment, and tell these kids they cannot be on the team because of who they are. I will continue to defend the rights of all students to play sports with their friends and peers.' Ellison is also suing President Donald Trump and the Department of Justice to ensure transgender athletes can continue participating in girls' sports in the state. After Trump signed the 'Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports' executive order, the Minnesota State High School League announced it would defy federal law by allowing transgender athletes to continue playing in women's sports. Ellison then claimed at a press conference on April 22 that he received notice from the Department of Justice threatening legal action if the state did not follow the executive order, so the AG decided to sue first. 3 The trans pitcher threw 14 shutout innings, bringing the athlete's season ERA down to 0.88. kowit1982 – The White House later responded to the lawsuit, condemning Ellison for taking legal action to enable trans inclusion. 'Why would a grown man sue the Trump administration to allow other biological males to participate in women's sports? This is creepy and anti-woman,' White House spokesperson Harrison Fields told Fox News Digital. Minnesota's state legislature failed to pass the 'Preserving Girls' Sports Act' in early March, which would have stated that 'only female students may participate in an elementary or secondary school level athletic team or sport that an educational institution has restricted to women and girls.'
CBS News
20-05-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
High School softball players blast Minnesota laws on transgender athletes in new federal lawsuit
A Texas-based nonprofit has filed suit against several Minnesota agencies, including the Minnesota State High School League, alleging that their policy surrounding transgender athletes violates Title IX and undermines fairness and safety for female athletes. The lawsuit was filed in federal court Monday by Female Athletes United, a nonprofit organization that says it "advocates for fairness, safety, and equal opportunity for women and girls in sports." The organization says it has members across the country, including female athletes participating in high school sports in Minnesota. "Boys are displacing and defeating girls in competitive sports," the complaint reads, adding that Minnesota's policy allowing athletes to play based on their gender identity "expands opportunities for male athletes to compete and experience victory at the expense of female athletes," according to the plaintiffs. The defendants listed in the lawsuit include Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, Minnesota State High School League Executive Director Erich Martens, Minnesota Commission on Civil Rights Commissioner Rebecca Lucero and Minnesota Commissioner of Education Willie Jett. The suit was filed on behalf of three high school students in Anoka and Dakota counties. The lawsuit claims that Minnesota's transgender athlete policy, which allows "biologically male students" to compete in female sports if they identify as female, has led to those assigned male at birth "displacing and defeating girls in competitive sports." The lawsuit specifies that a 16-year-old girl at Maple Grove Senior High School, who is a member of Female Athletes United, competed in varsity softball against a team with a "biologically male athlete" and lost in a regular season game and sectionals. "Losing at sectionals meant that her team did not have a chance to advance to the state tournament," the lawsuit said. The lawsuit alleges another Female Athletes United member, a 16-year-old female athlete at Farmington High School, was hit by a pitch thrown by a "biologically male athlete" competing in girls' softball. The girl had "never experienced pain like this when getting hit by pitches on other occasions," the lawsuit said. The school districts listed as defendants govern the high schools in Maple Grove and Farmington. In addition to ending the participation of transgender athletes in female sports, the lawsuit seeks to have the defendants "correct all records" where Female Athletes United members lost to "biologically male athletes" or teams that include them. Ellison's office issued the following statement in response to the suit: "In addition to getting exercise and the fun of competition, playing sports comes with so many benefits for young people. You build friendships that can last a lifetime, you learn how to work as part of a team, and you get to feel like you belong. I believe it is wrong to single out one group of students, who already face higher levels of bullying and harassment, and tell these kids they cannot be on the team because of who they are. I will continue to defend the rights of all students to play sports with their friends and peers." And the state's department of human rights said, "The Minnesota Human Rights Act is one the strongest civil rights laws in the country and protects every Minnesotan from discrimination. We will respond in court." WCCO has reached out to the other defendants named in the lawsuit and are awaiting response. Ellison earlier sued the Trump administration over its transgender policies Last month, Ellison announced a lawsuit against the Trump administration, claiming the president's two executive orders targeting transgender youth and adults violate both the U.S. Constitution and Title IX. The lawsuit requests the court declare the orders unconstitutional and unlawful, Ellison said. The week before, the Department of Justice sued Maine's education department for "discriminating against women by failing to protect women in women's sports" in what U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi alleged is a violation of Title IX. Bondi added that the DOJ's actions in Maine could be followed by moves in other states, including Minnesota. Bondi previously sent letters to Ellison and Erich Martens, director of the Minnesota State High School League (MSHSL), warning them "Minnesota should be on notice" and her department "will hold accountable states and state entities that violate federal law." This story is developing and will be updated.
CBS News
20-02-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
AG Keith Ellison says transgender athlete ban violates Minnesota Human Rights Act
President Trump's executive order banning transgender athletes from competing in sports consistent with their gender identity violates the Minnesota Human Rights Act, the Minnesota Attorney General's Office opined on Thursday. The Minnesota State High School League requested a legal opinion from the attorney general's office after the U.S. Department of Education announced an investigation into the league for not complying with the executive order signed earlier this month. The order, titled "Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports," mandates that Title IX, the federal law banning sex discrimination in schools, be interpreted as prohibiting the participation of transgender girls and women in female sports. Those not in compliance jeopardize any federal funding they receive, Mr. Trump said. In the days after the executive order was signed, MSHSL released a statement saying participation and eligibility of transgender student-athletes is determined by the Minnesota Human Rights Act and the Minnesota Constitution. The attorney general's office's legal opinion affirmed that statement, saying the transgender student-athlete ban "does not supersede protections from discrimination in the Minnesota Constitution or Minnesota laws, and that complying with the Executive Order would be a violation of the Minnesota Human Rights Act." "While the Executive Order references Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972, Title IX does not authorize the President to issue directives with the force of law. Therefore, the Executive Order does not supersede Minnesota law," the attorney general's office said. However, some people in the state stand by the executive order and want it to be enforced. Minnesota House Republicans wrote a letter to MSHSL's director, Erich Martens, urging the league to reconsider its stance. "This executive order intends to uphold fairness and maintain competitive integrity in school-based athletics, including those in Minnesota," Speaker of the House Rep. Lisa Demuth wrote. "By refusing to comply, we believe the MSHSL is jeopardizing equal opportunities for all athletes, particularly female athletes." Note: The video above originally aired Feb. 12, 2025.
