KY governor vetoes protections for female athletes
The following quote may be attributed to Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel and Vice President of Advocacy Strategy Emilie Kao regarding Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear’s veto Wednesday of SB 83, a bill designed to protect athletic opportunities for the state’s female athletes:
“Women and girls deserve to compete on a level playing field. When we ignore biological reality, female athletes lose medals, podium spots, public recognition, and opportunities to compete. We’ve seen increasing examples across the country of males dominating girls’ athletic competitions when competing as females, capturing championships, and shattering long-standing female track records. By vetoing this bill, Gov. Beshear has chosen to reject fairness in sports for thousands of women and girls in Kentucky. We commend the legislators who took a stand for a level playing field for female athletes of all ages, and we urge them to swiftly overturn the governor’s veto.”
- Pronunciation guide: Kao (GOW’)
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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ABOUT Emilie Kao
Emilie Kao serves as senior counsel and vice president of advocacy strategy for Alliance Defending Freedom. Before joining ADF, Kao served as director of the DeVos Center for Religion and Civil Society at the Heritage Foundation. She also served as senior legal counsel at an international human rights law firm, East Asia team leader in the U.S. Department of State’s Office of International Human Rights, and director of international advocacy at the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty. She was an adjunct professor at Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University and is co-editor of the “First Principles on International Human Rights” essay series. She has testified before the U.S. Congress and spoken at the United Nations in Geneva and New York. Kao earned her A.B. cum laude from Harvard University and her J.D. from Harvard Law School. She is a member of the state bars of California and the District of Columbia and is admitted to practice in the U.S. Supreme Court.