“Be inclusive! Let trans girls play sports!”
Argument Submitted by: D.B., PhD
This is a case of False Mutual Exclusion. When people wrongly assert that X is mutually exclusive with Y when, in fact, it is possible to have both. The quotation above assumes that disallowing biological males to compete with biological females in women’s sports is mutually exclusive with allowing trans-identified males to participate in sports.
One possible response to this is to assert that you are not asking for trans-identified males to be excluded from sports but asking for them to be placed on sex-appropriate sports teams. This ensures fairness in athletic competition. The ability of trans-identified males to participate in sports is not mutually exclusive with the ability of females to participate in sports. One can also note that if trans-identified males are allowed to compete against biological females in women’s sports, this would be exclusionary towards biological females, since males have inherent biological differences from females that position them at a significant advantage in all athletic activities in which those biological differences are relevant. Thus, the few sports in which competition between men and women is fair are those in which those biological differences are not relevant, such as shooting and riding. However cumbersome and awkward, if you maintain the phrasing above you may prevent someone from claiming that you are saying men are superior to women, which is a common Straw Man argument.
If “inclusivity” in sports means enabling the greatest number of people to participate in sports and to enjoy the benefits that follow from athletic excellence, then that goal is best achieved by allowing only same-sex athletes to compete against one another. The inclusion of trans-identified males (“trans-women”) in sports is not increased by allowing them to compete in women’s sports since they can compete in men’s sports. Yet, the exclusion of females (“cis-women”) is increased by allowing trans-identified males to compete with them in women’s sports. Therefore, to maximize inclusivity trans-identified males should not be allowed to compete against biological females. You might even suggest creating a third category for trans-identified individuals to compete against each other.
