Nebraska passes new law banning transgender students from participating in women's sports

The Republican governor of Nebraska, Jim Pillen, on Wednesday signed a law officially banning transgender students from participating in women's sports, making the state the latest to bar transgender athletes from competing on women's and girls' teams. The conservative leader signed the billsurrounded by female athletes, a dozen lawmakers and former college swimmer Riley Gaines, who in recent months has become one of the most celebrated advocates of banning transgender athletes from women's sports.

The measure was apassed last week by the Nebraska Legislature in a close votethat was decided by a single vote cast along party lines. However,the bill was scaled back from its initial versionwhich sought not only to bar transgender athletes from competing on girls' and women's teams, but also to officially ban all transgender students from using bathrooms and locker rooms consistent with their gender identity. The bill's sponsors agreed to remove this ban after Omaha Republican Sen. Merv Riepe stated that he would otherwise vote against the measure.

A justified ban

Republicans behind the ban on transgender students in women's sports have argued for the past several years thatthe measure protects women and girlsto ensure they can compete fairly in their sporting disciplines. Several medical experts and even athletes have supported this causeby arguing that, in certain cases, transgender athletes have considerably greater physical ability than women or girls playing their same sport.

In recent months, at least 24 other states across the country have adopted such bans. The U.S. president, Donald Trump, signed an executive order earlier this year aimed at dicting which sports competitions transgender athletes can participate in, and even took on the state of Maine in court for allowing transgender athletes to participate in women's sports.