Parents claim school told daughter ‘transgenders have more rights’ when she lost her spot on varsity cross country team to a trans athlete
Parents at a California high school claim their daughter was told that “transgender people have more rights than cisgender people” after losing a spot on the varsity cross country team to a transgender transfer student.
Ryan Starling, the father of Taylor Starling who lost her spot on the team, claims the loss has “emotionally disrupted his entire family” and has now initiated legal action against the school district over the controversy.
Several parents at Martin Luther King High School in Riverside, California, also voiced their opposition to the decision, claiming the athlete was allowed to compete despite missing practices for academic reasons.
Mr. Starling told it Fox News: The fact that the athlete was able to compete while attending less than 25 percent of the practices is not fair. In what era, in which team, in which sport can you hardly come to practice and still participate?’
Fellow concerned parent Dan Slavin – whose daughter Kaitlyn Slavin is also on the team – described the decision as “not fair and not right.”
Both fathers are currently involved in a lawsuit against the Riverside Unified School District (RUSD).
Mr Starling claimed when Taylor and other girls on the team confronted school governors about the decision that they were allegedly told that ‘transgender people have more rights than cisgender people’.
He also alleged that the Title IX coordinator for RUSD stated “that as a cisgender girl, they do not have the same rights as a transgender girl.”
Taylor Sterling (left) with fellow student Kaitlyn Slavin (right). Both girls became embroiled in a transgender feud at their high school in California after Taylor lost her spot on the varsity cross country team.
Taylor and Kaitlyn were allegedly confronted by school staff for wearing t-shirts that read “Save Girls Sport.” According to their father’s lawsuit against the school district, the girls’ T-shirts were compared to swastikas
The feud at the school has only intensified after Taylor and Kaitlyn wore t-shirts that read “Save Girls Sport” to school in November.
The girls were allegedly confronted by the high school about the T-shirts on which they were allegedly compared to swastikas.
After more and more students showed up at school with the slogan, administrators tried to get the problems under control by changing the dress code and issuing detentions.
However, last month the school had abandoned efforts to discipline students after more than 400 students across the district reportedly wore the t-shirts.
At the same time, Taylor also successfully secured a spot back on the varsity team, much to the delight of her family, after beating the transgender athlete by almost three seconds in a recent competition.
Despite the support of some classmates. The students faced opposition from transgender activists who protested outside a recent RUSD school board meeting on Dec. 19.
President-elect Donald Trump has promised to ban trans athletes from competing in women’s sports.
The House has also said it will make Title IX revisions that would allow athletes to compete only in the gender category assigned to them at birth.
Martin Luther King High School (pictured) where students allege school officials told them that “transgender people have more rights than cisgender people,” after arguing over the decision to allow a transgender athlete to join the varsity cross country team to connect
However, the fight at Martin Luther High School could continue after California’s Democratic governor, Gavin Newsom, previously vowed to oppose any changes imposed by the new administration.
MailOnline has reached out to RUSD for a response.
In an earlier statement to Fox News, RUSD said, “While these rules were not created by RUSD, the District is committed to complying with the law and CIF regulations.
“California state law prohibits discrimination against students on the basis of sex, gender identity, and gender expression, and specifically prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in physical education and athletics.
‘The protections we provide to all students are not only in line with the law, but also with our core values, including equality and wellbeing.’