Female Athletes United v. Minnesota

Description:  Female Athletes United is challenging a discriminatory Minnesota policy that allows male athletes to compete in women’s sports, resulting in males displacing and defeating females in their own sports.

MINNEAPOLIS – Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys filed a lawsuit Monday on behalf of Female Athletes United challenging Minnesota officials for allowing males to compete in women’s sports. As a result of the state’s discriminatory policy, males are displacing and defeating females in their own sports, violating the equal treatment and equal opportunities guaranteed by Title IX.

FAU is an organization that advocates to protect fairness, safety, and equal opportunity for women and girls in sports. FAU members include Minnesota high school softball players who have been forced to compete against a male athlete. The softball team with the male athlete recently defeated last year’s defending state champion team.

“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,” said ADF Legal Counsel Suzanne Beecher. “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.”

The complaint highlights the experience of three FAU members currently competing in high-school softball in Minnesota. One, a junior, has competed in varsity softball for two years against a male athlete and has lost in games during the regular season and sectionals, which meant that her team didn’t have a chance to advance to the state tournament. Her team competed against and lost to this male athlete in a regular season game this year. In that game, the FAU member’s team didn’t score at all; the male athlete pitched seven strikeouts. Her team is likely to compete against this mixed-sex team again in a sectional competition this season, and again next year.

Another athlete, also a junior, is a star pitcher who has already committed to play collegiate softball. This member was on the male athlete’s club team until she found out that she would have to compete against the athlete for pitching time. She then decided to quit the club team. She will likely have to compete against the male athlete at the state softball tournament this season.

The third FAU member is a sophomore who was hit by a pitch thrown by this male athlete during club softball. The speed and strength of the pitch made the pain more intense than she has felt at other times getting hit by a pitch thrown by a girl. She also anticipates she’ll have to compete against this male athlete at the state softball tournament this year.

Minnesota does not place any physical limitations on participation in the female category that attempt to mitigate the recorded advantages that male athletes have on average over females.

Renee Carlson of True North Legal is serving as co-counsel with ADF on the case. For more than a decade, Renee has been actively involved in standing up for female athletes in Minnesota. Carlson testified against the discriminatory policy when Minnesota first adopted it 10 years ago and has worked tirelessly to overturn it since, including her most recent work in the state legislature on two bills that would ensure males cannot participate in female sports.

ADF attorneys filed the lawsuit, Female Athletes United v. Minnesota, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota.

Alliance Defending Freedom is an alliance-building, non-profit legal organization committed to protecting religious freedom, free speech, parental rights, and the sanctity of life.

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