Trans athlete sues university and college sports org after losing women's volleyball scholarship
Biological male transgender volleyball player Emma Morquecho is suing Westcliff University and the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletes (NAIA) – an alternate college sports governing body to the NCAA – after claiming a scholarship offer was revoked and eligibility was denied.
The lawsuit was announced by the civil rights organization Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF).
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"The Latino community is often first to be targeted under practices of irrational discrimination, and this case falls within that pattern," said MALDEF president and general counsel, Thomas A. Saenz, in a statement. "Discrimination, based on stereotype and false assumption, against trans athletes must end, especially in California where so many of those harmed will be members of the state’s largest racial/ethnic community."
Fox News Digital has reached out to Westcliff University and the NAIA for comment.
The lawsuit alleged Morquecho disclosed the athlete's birth gender to university officials in 2022 and later received a scholarship offer. Morquecho alleges that on Aug. 10, 2023, the head coach of the Westcliff women’s volleyball team sent an email back saying the athlete was not eligible to play that fall and that Westcliff revoked the scholarship.
"By taking a stand, I’m not just fighting for myself. I’m speaking for every trans person who has been silenced, and I hope my voice empowers others in our community to know their stories and their rights matter," Morquecho said via statement from MALDEF. "Together, we can create a future where everyone is treated with dignity and respect."
President Donald Trump signed the "Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports" executive order on Feb. 5, igniting a crackdown on males in women's college sports. The NCAA changed its gender eligibility policy the very next day to exclude all biological males from competing in the women's category.
However, the NAIA got a head start on that trend in April 2024, when it changed its gender eligibility policy.
The revised policy stated that all athletes may participate in NAIA-sponsored male sports but only athletes whose biological sex assigned at birth is female and who have not begun hormone therapy will be allowed to participate in women's sports.
A student who began hormone therapy may participate in activities such as workouts, practices and team activities, but not in interscholastic competition.
Now, Morquecho is looking to challenge that rule in court.
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