In Glennon Doyle's book "Untamed" (opens in new tab), he says If we are filled with coffee, coffee spills. If we are filled with tea, tea spills. Collisions are inevitable. If we want to change what spills from us, we must strive to change what is in us."

The past year has been one of perpetual clashes, showing us how much effort we must make to change what spills out. We have seen kneeling during the national anthem in sports become the norm, corporations co-opt "Black Lives Matter" as a badge of honor, masses of people protesting for dignity and life in the streets, and police budgets being slashed in major cities like Los Angeles. Not long ago, this would have been unthinkable. But as we have begun to understand as a collective, we cannot expect to arrive at our destination and kick up our feet.

As someone who lives at the intersection of many different identities, I have grown accustomed to having to set aside a part of myself to fight for another identity. I have stood at center court and fought for racial justice, negotiated a landmark collective bargaining agreement (open in new tab) (CBA) at the WNBA, and spoken up for LGBTQ+ rights time and time again. So when I saw President Biden sign the Executive Order (opens in new tab) making it clear that this new administration will protect all LGBTQ+ people under federal civil rights law, a part of me that is often put on the shelf felt the warmth of the light.

Shortly thereafter, I experienced something else I was familiar with. If you play women's sports, you are familiar with online trolls. If you speak out about race, you've experienced being subjected to it. If you are open about your love for your wife, you learn to click "block" and move on. But if you express your most basic support for the humanity of the trans community, a new level of hatred surfaces. The hot coffee spilling from these mugs is filled with work that has not been addressed in our culture. Fear, misunderstanding, and downright contempt for trans people is everywhere. And somehow now this fear of trans people and trans bodies is zeroing in on trans people in sports (open in new tab).

It would be funny, if not painful, to see "protecting women in sports" used as a cover to exclude trans women. There are renewed calls to police the bodies of female and girl athletes by not allowing trans girls to participate on school athletic teams. It is as if we can protect women and girls by eliminating those who think they look too much like boys or are given an unfair competitive advantage (for the record, this has not been proven (opens in new tab)). But this is precisely what has hurt so many athletes in women's sports, whether cisgender or transgender. It is this scrutiny that is a threat to women's sports, not the presence of trans women and girls. We must ask ourselves: why are trans girls and women targeted the most?

Many of the most vocal opponents of trans women do not advocate for greater media exposure for women's sports, greater resources and marketing for women's sports, and investment in sports programs for women and girls across the country. We are not wearing our jerseys or participating in our games. Instead, they are using our presence as a weapon to hurt others. These people are trying to keep women in their place and use us as swords to cut down those who pose no threat to the development of our sport.

As a child, I lived on a basketball court. Whether I was playing on a concrete slab in my backyard, at the local community center, or traveling to a club team game, basketball gave me a safe place to escape everything that was going on around me. It didn't matter who was there: I put on my shoes and played. Ironically, it was when I played (and won) against the boys that I received the most praise from those around me. In sports, we celebrate competitive advantage. We love to watch A'ja Wilson and LeBron James dominate their opponents with their speed, their muscle, and their skill. But especially in our formative years, young people join sports teams for a sense of community, a sense of belonging. What message are we giving young trans people when we say you can't participate? You are denying our existence.

I have dedicated my life to women's sports. I care about women's sports athletes and our future success. The fight to keep transgender people out of sports is about power and control, not about protecting cis women in sports. Montana (opens in new tab), Oklahoma (opens in new tab), Tennessee (opens in new tab), and other states are trying to pass legislation that would prevent transgender youth from participating in sports, using the bathroom, and receiving life-saving medical care.

We cannot celebrate women's sports without celebrating all women and girls who love sports, including trans women and girls. Under no circumstances is it acceptable to segregate trans athletes, police their bodies, and then claim that this will help in the larger fight for gender justice. In that game, we all lose.

If you want to support transgender rights, you can support the ACLU (opens in new tab), G.L.I.T.S. (Gays and Lesbians in a Transgender Society) (opens in new tab), Transgender Law Center (opens in new tab), Okla. Project (opens in new tab), and other organizations.