Lia Thomas and the long tradition of 'gender policing' female athletes

[Jilly_in_VA]

In a February 1937 issue of Look magazine, a photo of American Olympic runner Helen Stephens appeared below the caption “What Do You Think? Is This a Man Or a Woman?” The image and the accompanying query were part of a larger feature titled: “When Is a Woman Actually a Woman? Today’s Chief Worry Among Athletic Officials.”

In the aftermath, Stephens — a two-time Olympic champion who never lost a race — lost valuable career and scholarship opportunities, said Sharon Kinney-Hanson, the author of “The Life of Helen Stephens: The Fulton Flash.”

“You think about what feminine standards were in her era: It was the glamor, you had to be gorgeous, you had to be big-chested and curvaceous, and Helen was not interested in that,” Kinney-Hanson said. “She was interested in sports, making a career of it.”

While much has changed for female athletes since Stephens’ day, suspicion surrounding their gender and sexuality — from offensive remarks to sex verification tests — remains. Several historians argue that the heated debate surrounding transgender college swimmer Lia Thomas, whose record-breaking season has thrust her unwillingly into the national spotlight, is a continuation of that century-old legacy.

“Historically, there’s just been a concern that sports would masculinize women or that women might either feminize sports or that you would lose gender distinctions that many people valued,” said Susan Cahn, a history professor at the University of Buffalo and the author of “Coming on Strong: Gender and Sexuality in Women’s Sport.”

She added that trans and intersex athletes — those who are born with reproductive or sexual anatomy that does not fit the typical “male” or “female” categories — further blur boundaries and raise questions about how separate and distinct sex and gender really are.

https://www.nbcnews.com/nbc-out/out-news/lia-thomas-long-tradition-gender-policing-female-athletes-rcna20091
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Interesting that the article does not mention Brittney Griner, whose gender has been questioned a LOT.

[keithbvadu2]

1. 1+

[keithbvadu2]

2. some (many?) do not get the physical surgery that changes their anatomy to the newer gender.

Previous articles about Lia Thomas brought out the fact that some (many?) do not get the physical surgery that changes their anatomy to the newer gender. Other articles say she has had such surgery. Would it be conceivable that a person 'changes' gender with hormones and such for the purpose of some advantage by being the other gender. Could they then switch back to the original gender when the advantage has become moot?

Has it happened?

[Jilly_in_VA]

3. I think you're missing the point of the article

which is not about Lia Thomas specifically, or even about trans women in sports, but about gender policing women in sports. Please go back and re-read the whole thing.

I remember the Press sisters. They were very scary looking and very good at what they did. In keeping with Russian custom at the time, they also did not shave legs and pits as western women did, and they were pretty hairy. As soon as even rudimentary gender and drug testing came about for the Olympics, they mysteriously disappeared and were never heard from again. That would have been about 1960 or 1964, I believe.

But other women athletes are getting "gender policed" even now for having testosterone levels that are deemed "too high", even though they are naturally occurring, which can happen in the normal course of things. Some were born intersex and raised as women, didn't even know they weren't. Others are natural born females but just have this anomaly. WADA needs to get their act together and listen to honest to Pete scientists.

And women still get gender policed in sports and labeled "lesbian" for being athletes whether they are or not (and why should anyone give a flying Wallenda about someone else's sexuality anyway if they are secure in their own--I guess these people, mostly men and a few prissy-ass females, are not).