U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515
Dear Representative:
On behalf of the 3 million members of the National Education Association, dedicated and trusted professionals who teach and support nearly 50 million students in public pre-K-12 schools, colleges, and universities across America, we urge you to vote NO on H.R. 28. Votes related to this bill may be included in the NEA Report Card for the 119th Congress.
NEA members oppose H.R. 28 because it would exclude transgender students from participating in activities and opportunities that should be available to all students. This bill distracts us from the very real challenges and threats that educators, parents, and students face, including:
- the rise in gun violence in communities of all sizes and descriptions;
- the dire shortage of educators;
- students’ need for school-based mental health care; and
- the need for the resources to provide students with one-on-one attention and the latest technology, textbooks, and learning materials.
H.R. 28, the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act, does not strengthen Title IX or protect girls and women in sports. It does nothing to promote equity in resources, funding, or opportunity, or to tackle the sexual abuses of athletes and subsequent cover-ups that have occurred in women’s sports. The bill’s purpose is to further divide our nation, and it is using an extremely vulnerable population to do so.
H.R. 28 will degrade transgender students’ emotional and mental health. Research in the Journal of Interpersonal Violence reports that 82% of transgender people have considered suicide, and more than 40% have attempted it, with the risk of suicide highest among youth. In addition, in states where legislatures passed laws restricting the rights of transgender and non-binary people, suicide attempts by transgender youth increased by as much as 72% in the subsequent years, according to a Trevor Project study. The peer-reviewed study, based on laws passed from 2018 to 2022, was published in 2024 in the journal Nature Human Behaviour.
H.R. 28, by excluding transgender students from participating in sports, would compound feelings of isolation and “otherness.” Participation in sports not only cultivates meaningful bonds within the school community that many of us continue to treasure well into adulthood; participation also develops skills such as communication, teamwork, and leadership. All students should have the opportunity to cultivate these skills because they are crucial in building families and careers, and contributing to our communities.
H.R. 28 could subject students, whether or not they are transgender, to invasions of privacy. These could include obsessive policing and monitoring of young people’s bodies in attempts to investigate and determine a student’s gender. Such actions would not only harm and humiliate individuals, but also reinforce narrow and outdated notions of what it means to be “feminine” or “masculine.” No legislative chamber, school board, or athletics association should concern itself with these sensitive, private issues.
H.R. 28 erodes the fairness and equity that generations of Americans have struggled to achieve. It is a dangerous, mean-spirited attempt to erase transgender youth from public life that violates our fundamental rights and values. By legalizing discrimination, the bill weakens our democracy.
History is full of horrific examples of what happens when laws are implemented that keep specific groups out of communities, schools, and workplaces and restrict them from opportunities to thrive. Not only do the individuals suffer greatly, but our collective humanity is diminished. As Dr. King said, we are all “caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”
Educators throughout our nation understand this perhaps better than most. Their careers are devoted to seeing and appreciating their students’ individuality, while also reinforcing the lesson most of us learned as children: Treat others with the same respect, understanding, and compassion that you would want for yourself and those you love.
Parents and educators are united on the challenges that confront our schools, and we ask that members of Congress work with us on these difficult issues. Please support student learning and development by ensuring that students across our great nation—no matter their race, background, sexual orientation, or gender identity—are respected, kept safe from gun violence in their schools and communities, and have the resources, one-on-one attention, and well-rounded curricula they need and deserve. Vote NO on H.R. 28.
Sincerely,
Marc Egan
Director of Government Relations
National Education Association
