PRESS RELEASE: DFI Calls on Biden Administration to Protect Female Athletes, Withdraw Illegal Title IX Athletics Rule

WASHINGTON—The Defense of Freedom Institute for Policy Studies (DFI) is calling on the Biden administration to follow the law, protect female athletes, and preserve women’s sports by withdrawing its proposed Title IX athletics rule.

The proposed rule, which the Department of Education published in April, subverts the original intent of Title IX by requiring schools, colleges, and universities that receive federal funds to allow boys and men, based on their perceived “gender identity,” to compete in women’s and girls’ athletics. The Department’s illegal rule also ignores that it has no authority to remake Title IX’s clear provisions to advance the radical policy goals of the current administration.

In its public comment on the rule, DFI argues the Biden administration’s proposed regulations fly in the face of five decades of progress made under Title IX and “will result in profound unfairness to women in sports and legitimate concerns for women’s physical safety.”  

The comment continues, “Throughout its proposed rule, the Department shows special solicitude for the boys and men who identify as female. It shows no such care for women and girls who will be forced to bear the rule’s harsh consequences and does not even require an educational institution to consider their interests, much less their harm, when formulating sex-related criteria for participation in athletics.”

The Biden administration only provided 30 days for the public to comment on this rule, which has profound implications for women and girls. During that time, DFI led a grassroots public awareness campaign that resulted in more than 150,000 comments from the public opposing the administration’s proposed changes to Title IX.

“Joe Biden is turning the athletic field into a legal minefield for women and girls. Americans are clear-eyed about what the Biden administration is attempting to do here—advancing gender ideology theory and putting female athletes at risk of physical injury,” said Defense of Freedom Institute President and Co-founder Bob Eitel. “Tens of thousands of parents, athletes, coaches, and others have shown up in droves to oppose this radical rewrite of Title IX. We are proud to have helped lead that effort and will continue to fight to preserve Title IX and protect women’s sports.”

To read DFI’s public comment in its entirety, click here.  

The Biden administration is required to review and respond to the comments submitted by the public prior to issuing its final Title IX athletics rule. DFI expects that the final rule will be challenged in court.

DFI has a strong track record of defending Title IX and supporting female athletes. Earlier this month, DFI filed an amicus brief in B.P.J. v. West Virginia State Board of Education, arguing that West Virginia’s “Save Women’s Sports” bill is constitutional as it does not violate the Equal Protection Clause of the U.S. Constitution. In March, DFI filed an amicus brief in Soule v. Connecticut Association of Schools supporting the four female athletes in the case who were forced to compete against men in high school track and therefore lost opportunities for prizes, scholarships, and recognition. In January, DFI filed an amicus brief in The State of Tennessee v. U.S. Department of Education asserting the Biden administration does not have the statutory authority to change the definition of “sex” in Title IX to include “gender identity.”

DFI also recently release a web series titled “Leveling the Playing Field.” In it, DFI interviews coaches, athletes, state attorney generals, and legislators about the impacts the Biden administration’s rewrite of Title IX will have on women and girls.  To view highlights, click here.