On Jan. 13, the U.S. Supreme Court is set to hear oral arguments in a pair of cases that could determine whether Alaska and other states are allowed to protect women’s sports from male athletes who claim to identify as females.
The cases, Little v. Hecox and West Virginia v. B.P.J., deal with gender-confused males who demand to compete in female sports. In both cases, lower court judges have blocked bans on male athletes competing in women-only sports.
Depending on how the Supreme Court justices ultimately rule, their decision could impact Alaska. In 2023, Alaska’s State Education Board approved a policy that barred gender-confused males from competing in Alaska girls’ high school sporting competitions.
Last year, seven Alaska female state lawmakers who signed an amicus brief in favor of protecting female sports. These Alaska women include Jamie Allard, Julie Coulombe, Elexie Moore, Cathy Tilton, Jubilee Underwood, Sarah Vance and Shelly Hughes.
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Additionally, Alaska Family Council is one of numerous pro-family organizations that have signed on in favor of protecting the integrity of women’s sports.
West Virginia Attorney General JB McCuskey is confident the Supreme Court will uphold the right of states to protect women’s sports. He posted on X that West Virginia expects a 9-0 decision.
“Our argument here is that, very simply, biological males are bigger, faster, and stronger than girls, and therefore, it creates an unfair and an unsafe playing space for girls,” he said.
