Sixteen-year-old AB Hernandez is a natural athlete. On a recent blustery afternoon, she stood at the edge of Jurupa Valley High School’s athletic field, waiting for her event at a track and field meet to be called. As a voice announced over the loudspeaker, “Girls Triple Jump!,” she ran to take her place. On her turn, she broke into a measured, high stride, arms swinging in time with her legs. She quickened her pace and hurtled towards a sand pit. As she reached her mark, she flung herself high into the air and forwards several meters. She quickly pointed her toes and reached her arms forward as she descended, finally splashing down into the sand. Cheers erupted from the stands while she rolled onto her stomach, stood and ran to her friends, smiling.
Hernandez is the transgender athlete who was thrown into the national spotlight after the president of a nearby school board doxxed her — revealing her name, her high school and the fact that she is trans. Since then, Hernandez has been seen her name in Newsweek and The Washington Post. She has been smeared on right-wing podcasts and harassed online; some of her antagonists have even shown up at her track meets.
A small faction of adults have made AB Hernandez the face of a campaign to rewrite California law that has allowed transgender children to play on their school’s sports teams for over a decade. None of them has children enrolled in the Jurupa Valley Unified School District; several homeschool their kids.
