Home US Martina Navratilova sends three-word message to Democrats after they vote against trans ban bill

Martina Navratilova sends three-word message to Democrats after they vote against trans ban bill

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Navratilova slammed Democrats for refusing to support a trans ban in women's sports

Tennis legend Martina Navratilova slammed Democrats for refusing to support a Republic bill aimed at effectively banning transgender girls and women from participating in school sports.

“There should be more demos here,” the 68-year-old Prague resident wrote on X. “I know many people who agree, but are afraid to say anything because of re-election. I say do the right thing. Grow a spine….”

The U.S. House of Representatives passed the bill on Tuesday, backed by newly elected Republican President Donald Trump, which promises to withhold federal funds from schools that allow trans girls and women to compete in women’s sports.

The bill, called the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2025, passed the Republican-controlled House on a 218-206 vote. Two Democrats, Henry Cuellar and Vincente Gonzalez, joined Republicans in advancing the legislation, an increase from the previous term when no Democrats supported the measure.

Another Democrat voted “present.”

The bill faces an uncertain future in the US Senate. With a 53-47 majority, Republicans could put the bill up for a vote but may not be able to pass it given the chamber’s filibuster rule, which requires 60 members to agree on most legislation.

It is unclear whether a Democrat in the Senate would support the bill.

Navratilova slammed Democrats for refusing to support a trans ban in women’s sports

Despite being an outspoken advocate for LGBTQ+ rights and a critic of the president-elect, Navratilova is a staunch critic of transgender athletes in women’s sports.

She explained her position while condemning Trump in an October post.

“I lived in a totalitarian authoritarian country in my youth and I will not vote for that now or ever,” wrote Navratilova, who grew up in Czechoslovakia. ‘Trump is not a pro-woman rapist and sexual assaulter, he is against everything that has to do with transgender people. A big difference. I support trans people but not male bodies in sex based (sic) spaces for women. Simple.’

Despite her objections to America’s conservative right, Navratilova has nevertheless embraced the movement to ban transgender athletes from women’s sports.

About 3 percent of U.S. high school students identify as transgender, according to data released in October by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But in the U.S., 25 states have so far passed some laws restricting transgender student-athletes from competing, according to the Movement Advancement Project, a think tank that advocates for transgender rights.

Transgender rights have become a political flashpoint in the US over the past decade, with the focus shifting to sports participation in recent years as a few transgender college athletes have found success, such as Lia Thomas, who won a national collegiate title in women’s swimming in 2022. .

The National Collegiate Athletic Association considers transgender competition rules on a sport-by-sport basis, taking into account policies followed by leading world sports associations.

The bill faces an uncertain future in the Senate. With a 53-47 majority, Republicans could put the bill up for a vote, but may not be able to pass it because of the filibuster rule.

The bill faces an uncertain future in the Senate. With a 53-47 majority, Republicans could put the bill up for a vote, but may not be able to pass it because of the filibuster rule.

House of Representatives Democrat Pete Aguilar argued before the vote that the bill has unintended consequences and “puts children at risk” for government “inspections” of transgender students.

“There is concern that there will be abuse,” Aguilar told reporters.

This week’s bill proposes to amend the landmark 1972 Title IX law, which prohibited discrimination on the basis of sex. It would force schools to follow strict gender definitions “based solely on a person’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth,” meaning students who were assigned male at birth and have since changed gender would not be eligible for athletics competition.

The bill allows transgender women to practice and train with women’s or girls’ athletic teams, “as long as no woman is deprived of opportunities.”

Trump told Fox News in October that he would support such restrictions, saying, “The president forbids it. You just don’t let it happen.’

Democratic Rep. Sarah McBride was sworn in this month as the first openly transgender member of Congress, following a campaign focused on economic issues including protections for unions and affordable health care and child care.

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