In Washington on Monday, former first lady Melania Trump publicly claimed to 'fully support' the LGBTQ+ community while applauding a US Supreme Court ruling that upholds bans on transgender women and girls competing in female school sports. In her rare political intervention, posted on X, Melania framed the decision as a necessary step to protect 'female athletes,' even as critics argued the ruling entrenches discrimination against transgender students.
The Supreme Court's decision, handed down by its six-justice conservative majority, upheld state laws in Idaho and West Virginia that bar transgender girls and women from competing in female sports teams. According to court records, the justices found that the bans do not violate the US Constitution, and unanimously concluded they do not breach Title IX, the federal law that prohibits sex discrimination in education. The ruling comes after more than two dozen Republican-led states passed similar restrictions, turning school sports into a frontline battle over transgender rights in America.
