Phoenix Mercury player Brittney Griner (left) and fmr. All-American swimmer Riley Gaines | Phoenix Mercury / Independent Women's Forum
Phoenix Mercury player Brittney Griner (left) and fmr. All-American swimmer Riley Gaines | Phoenix Mercury / Independent Women's Forum
Former All-America swimmer Riley Gaines criticized Phoenix Mercury player Brittney Griner following Griner's remarks in support of boys participating in girls' school sports.
"Which NBA team would have Brittney Griner since apparently the overwhelming, obvious differences between men and women should simply be overlooked?" tweeted Gaines. "Heartbreaking to see athletically successful women take this demeaning stance. And if we're going to talk about crimes, Brittney..."
When asked in a recent press conference about legislation in the states that would prohibit boys from participating in girls' school sports, Griner said it is "a crime" to "separate someone for any reason."
"That ranks high on the list of things I’ll be fighting for and speaking up against," Griner said. "I think it’s a crime, honestly, to separate someone for any reason. So, I definitely will be speaking up against that legislation and those laws that are trying to be passed, for sure."
Griner, 32, has played for the Mercury since she was selected with the first overall pick in the 2013 WNBA draft. She has won two Olympic gold medals and is a six-time WNBA All-Star.
She was speaking at her first press conference since being released from a Russian prisoner in a prisoner exchange for Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout, who was once nicknamed the "Merchant of Death." Griner, who had been playing with the Russian Premier League, had been arrested on February 17, 2022 on smuggling charges by Russian customs officials who found cannabis oil in her luggage. Griner's lawyers told the Russian court that she was prescribed cannabis for "severe chronic pain," and Griner pled guilty to the charges and was sentenced to serve nine years in prison.
The Phoenix Mercury re-signed Griner on February 21, 2023.
Gaines is a former University of Kentucky, All-American swimmer who tied with University of Pennsylvania male swimmer Will "Lia" Thomas in the 200 freestyle event at the 2022 NCAA championships. This tie came after Thomas won the 500 yard freestyle event.
“Lia Thomas is not a brave, courageous woman who EARNED a national title,” tweeted Gaines following the championships. “He is an arrogant, cheat who STOLE a national title from a hardworking, deserving woman. The @ncaa is responsible.”
The Grand Canyon Times reported last month that Arizona is one of 21 states to ban boys from playing girls’ high school sports.
In March 2022, then-Gov. Doug Ducey (R-Ariz.) signed into law Senate Bill 1165, which prohibits biological males from competing in girls’ sports at the K-12 and collegiate levels. That law is now being challenged by a lawsuit filed on April 18 in the U.S. District Court in Tucson.
Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes (D) announced last month she would not defend Senate Bill 1165 in that lawsuit. The Grand Canyon Times reported on April 27 that Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne would hire his own legal team to defend the law.
Former Congressman Lt. Col. Allen West (ret.), executive director of the American Constitutional Rights Union (ACRU), told the Grand Canyon Times that Mayes' decision to not defend the law "is highly disconcerting."
“The decision by the Arizona Attorney General to sacrifice young women seeking to excel in sports upon the altar of gender dysphoria is highly disconcerting,” said West. “The left desires to erase women from our society. Biological males wishing to compete against females is not heroic, it is cowardice personified. And those supporting this absurdity are utterly deranged and in violation of the constitutional rights of Women in America."
As of publication time, there are 29 states that still allow boys to participate in girls’ high school sports: Alaska, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin.
Which states have banned boys from participating in girls high school sports — and which states still allow it?
* 2022: Federal appeals court rejects challenge to Connecticut's policy allowing boys to participate in girls sports.
** U.S. Supreme Court declined to overturn federal appeals court ruling blocking WV enforcement of state ban.
Source: State statutes and codes
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