The families of two “transgender” teenagers are suing the state over a new law that forbids them from playing sports as females. Governor Chris Sununu signed House Bill 1205 in July. The law, scheduled to take effect today, “requires schools to designate athletics by sex and prohibits biological males from participating in female athletics.”
In a statement after signing the bill, Sununu said:
HB 1205 ensures fairness and safety in women’s sports by maintaining integrity and competitive balance in athletic competitions. With this widely supported step, New Hampshire joins nearly half of all U.S. States in taking this measure.
The Plaintiffs
But 15-year-old Parker Tirrell, a soccer player, and 14-year-old Iris Turmelle, a tennis player and track athlete, say that the new law is discriminatory.
Said Tirrell in a statement:
Playing soccer with my teammates is where I feel the most free and happy. We’re there for each other, win or lose. Not being allowed to play on my team with the other girls would disconnect me from so many of my friends and make school so much harder. I just want to be myself and to learn, play, and support my teammates like I did last year.
I am where I am because it’s been 11 years of commitment to a sport I love. It’s not because I have any sort of biological advantage. It’s because I’m committed to the sport…. It’s just straight up discrimination.
His mother, Sara, agreed, saying:
Any parent wants to know their child is healthy, happy, and feels like they belong. That is no different for my husband and me as parents of a transgender daughter. I am really worried about the harmful impact it will have on Parker’s self-esteem and wellbeing if she is told she has to start the new school year without joining her teammates on the field.
Turmelle, an incoming freshman, laments that he is not treated as the girls are, saying in a statement:
Starting high school is exciting and new. I played intramural tennis in middle school. I’ve been looking forward to trying out for the tennis and track teams because it will be a way to make more friends in my new school, and I know I’ll learn a lot from it. I’m a transgender girl, I’ve known that my whole life and everyone knows I’m a girl. I don’t understand why I shouldn’t get to have the same opportunities as other girls at school.
His mother, Amy, hoped that joining sports teams would keep Turmelle from being bullied:
Iris experienced bullying at her middle school, and my husband and I just want her to be safe, feel included, and to be treated fairly so she can have a positive and happy high school experience.
The Suit
The lawsuit names New Hampshire Education Commissioner Frank Edelblut and several other state officials as defendants. The New Hampshire ACLU and LGBT advocacy group GLAD are aiding the plaintiffs in their legal challenge.
Said Henry Klementowicz of the ACLU:
Parker and Iris are entitled to be treated with dignity and respect like every other student. Instead, HB 1205 stigmatizes and discriminates against transgender girls and tells them they aren’t deserving of the same educational opportunities [available] to other girls in public schools. All students do better in school when they have access to resources that improve their mental, emotional, and physical health and Parker and Iris deserve that same access.
A “Normal High School Experience”?
Something Tirrell’s mother said about the situation is interesting. “We just want our kid to have a normal high school experience like everyone else, and so we’re just really trying hard to make sure that’s a possibility for Parker.”
But, as the lawsuit points out, “Parker has been receiving puberty-blocking medication since May of 2023. Parker began hormone therapy in December 2023.” Doesn’t that alone ensure that Parker won’t “have a normal high school experience like everyone else”?
How does being a party in a very public lawsuit with the ACLU and GLAD fit into that “normal high school experience”? Are the parents really looking for “normal” for their sons? It appears that they’re treating them as oddities and looking for the attention that goes along with it.
Neither Sununu nor the state has commented on the lawsuit except to say that the attorney general’s office is reviewing it.
