Today is International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women
But a judge in Colorado ruled in favor of a male athlete playing on SJSU's women's volleyball team, despite the fact that he has been injuring female players all season.
Today is International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. Not withstanding the fact that I hate all these “days” dedicated to so much everything and nothing, today would have been a great day for the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado to grant emergency injunctive relief to the female student athletes standing up against the Mountain West Conference’s failure to protect women from men competing in women’s sports.
But that isn’t what happened.
The judge instead decided to allow Blaire Fleming — a male playing women’s volleyball at San Jose State University (SJSU) — and SJSU to play in the Mountain West Conference Tournament.
As was testified to in the hearing last week, Fleming has already injured players on his own team and other teams this season. But the judge decided on his behalf.
This is misogyny and violence against women sanctioned by the courts and the NCAA and SJSU and the Mountain West Conference.
The 11 young women and one coach (Melissa Batie-Smoose, the assistant coach at SJSU who has been suspended for speaking up and joining this lawsuit) plan to appeal. The Plaintiffs are undeterred and have already filed a notice of emergency appeal to the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals. They are asking the Tenth Circuit to enter an emergency injunction pending appeal to address the Mountain West Conference’s continuing violations of Title IX and the rights of women in advance of the women’s volleyball tournament in Las Vegas which begins on Wednesday.
ICONs Women is leading the lawsuit. You can support their work when you buy a collaborative t-shirt at XX-XY Athletics and you can round up at checkout or customize a donation to give even more.
Please consider supporting their work. You can also do so here on their site directly.
Here’s more of my take on the situation:
I’m trying to spread the word. I wear your T shirt weekly and point this horrific truth out to my friends who say this gender thing destroying my daughter is a fad and not really a thing. Sadly, I don’t enjoy their company anymore. These women have seen me at my most desperate moments and still —-But, abortion…I am so impressed with the female athletes standing their ground.
Wow. 😢 There are so many things that need to be fixed in this country. Thank you for what you do, Jennifer Sey, in speaking up for girls and women...even those who don't yet realize how they are contributing to their own demise. 🫤