Mom of trans child speaks out after girls’ volleyball team forfeited and refused to play against her
Nereyda Hernandez also hit out at a school board member for public comments she made
The mom of a transgender athlete has blasted California school officials for ‘entertaining and welcoming harassment’ against her child after an opposing institution refused to play a volleyball game against her.
AB Hernandez, who stars for the Jurupa Valley High School volleyball team, was due to face off against the Riverside Poly High School girls’ squad last Friday (August 15).
Unknown Number: The High School Catfish trailer
However, the match never went ahead, and an official statement was later issued by Riverside Poly, stating: “We understand this is disappointing for our athletes, families and supporters, and we appreciate the community’s understanding.
“We remain committed to providing a safe, positive environment for all student-athletes throughout the season.”
AB Hernandez plays sports for Jurupa Valley High School (KCRA 3/YouTube)
Multiple parents later told Fox Digital that the game was thrown due to the inclusion of Hernandez, a transgender athlete, on the roster, and that the players themselves did not make the decision.
Amanda Vickers, a member of the Riverside Unified School District board, informed the outlet: “Tonight, the girls of Riverside Polly High School, they’re not going to end up like Payton McNabb.”
Vickers referred to a former high school volleyball player who suffered permanent brain damage after being struck in the head with a spike from a trans athlete in 2022.
AB Hernandez’s mother makes impassioned statement
The athletes mother has recently spoken out (Family Handout)
It’s understood that after the forfeited game and Vickers’ statements, local parents attended a meeting with the Riverside Unified School District board on Thursday (August 21).
Some reportedly defended their children for forfeiting the match, whilst speaking out against the school district for its current gender politics, the New York Post reported.
Hernandez’s mother, Nereyda, was also at the meeting. She told attendees that she believed her daughter was ‘not the problem’.
She also took aim at Vickers’ statement, claiming she’d ‘entertained and welcomed harassment’ toward her child by speaking to Fox News Digital.
“You are a board member. You have an oath to protect, to support all children, not just the ones that fit your ideas, your beliefs,” she continued.
“My daughter is not the problem. The problem is coordinated external efforts often led by individuals that travel from district to district … to spread fear and put parents against each other using religion as a shield for discrimination.
“This has nothing to do with fairness in sports and everything to do with erasing transgender children,” she added.
AB Hernandez has previously made national headlines
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Parents have previously protested Hernandez’s team inclusion in the past (Fox News Digital)
Riverside Poly’s boycott of Hernandez and the Jurupa Valley High School girls’ volleyball team follows an earlier incident where Hernandez was repeatedly heckled at a track meet.
According to Capital and Main, 30 adults, including three local school board members, continually yelled at the teenager while she competed at Yorba Linda High School in May.
At one point, the noise allegedly caused a false start in a race.
Speaking about her experience, Hernandez told the publication: “There’s nothing I can do about people’s actions, just focus on my own.
“I’m still a child, you’re an adult, and for you to act like a child shows how you are as a person.”
As per the New York Post, postseason meets Hernandez competed in have been attended by female athletes and their families protesting her inclusion.
These protestors often wore ‘Save Girls Sports’ T-shirts, which have allegedly been compared to swastikas by school officials, as per a lawsuit.
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The athlete (second left) has lifted the lid on how she deals with protestors in the past (Fox News Digital)
Donald Trump sends reminder to California schools
US President Donald Trump, 79, made a slight reference to the recent California-based controversy in a post shared to his social media site, Truth Social.
On Thursday, he wrote: “Any California school district that doesn’t adhere to our Transgender policies, will not be funded. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”
His threat is the latest in his fight against transgender rights, having sued the California Department of Education (CDE) and the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) in July over its policy to allow transgender athletes to compete in girls’ school sports.
The Trump administration alleged the policy was a violation of federal anti-discrimination laws, as per NBC News.
The lawsuit came despite the businessman signing a directive in February to remove federal funding from any school that allows transgender women or girls to compete in female sports.“It is the policy of the United States to rescind all funds from educational programs that deprive women and girls of fair athletic opportunities, which results in the endangerment, humiliation, and silencing of women and girls and deprives them of privacy,” the legislation read.
“It shall also be the policy of the United States to oppose male competitive participation in women’s sports more broadly, as a matter of safety, fairness, dignity, and truth.”
In signing the order, Trump claimed ‘the war on women’s sports is over’.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, contact the LGBT national hotline at 888-843-4564, available Monday to Friday 4pm-12am ET and 12pm-5pm ET on Saturdays.
Featured Image Credit: Riverside Unified School District Board Meetings
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Donald Trump is hitting out at one particular state who allegedly ignored his request regarding trans people in women’s sports.
The POTUS has made his feelings about transgender athletes competing in women’s sports very clear, and even signed an executive order banning those born biologically male from competing in women’s sports.
Part of the controversial order read: “In recent years, many educational institutions and athletic associations have allowed men to compete in women’s sports. This is demeaning, unfair, and dangerous to women and girls, and denies women and girls the equal opportunity to participate and excel in competitive sports.”
But several US states have been been taking a stand against the order, Illinois included. Just last month, the Illinois High School Association argued that the order was breaching the state’s Human Rights Act.
Donald Trump doesn’t want trans athletes competing in women’s sport (Chris Kleponis/CNP/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Now California has followed suit and California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) has made a series of changes to its rules in recent days that allows trans students to take part.
The new ruling adds: “A biological female student-athlete who would have earned a specific placement on the podium will also be awarded the medal for that place and the results will be reflected in the recording of the event.”
These changes came ahead of AB Hernandez, a transgender student athlete for Jurupa Valley High School, competing in the California State Track & Field Championships in Clovis over the weekend.
Hernandez came in first in both the girls’ high jump and triple jump. Loren Webster was the only female to beat Hernandez who came in first in the long jump.
AB Hernandez competed in the CIF State Track and Field Championships (Kirby Lee/Getty Images)
Following the CIF’s new rules, female athletes who finished behind Hernandez were all moved up a spot and received the medal they would have earned had the trans athlete not competed, Fox News reported.
In light of Hernandez’s success, Trump has issued a scathing message on Truth Social.
He penned on June 3: “A Biological Male competed in California Girls State Finals, WINNING BIG, despite the fact that they were warned by me not to do so.”
Continuing to make a swipe at Gavin Newsom, Trump went on: “As Governor Gavin Newscum fully understands, large scale fines will be imposed!!!”
Trump has threatened California with fines (@realDonaldTrump/Truth Social)
Hernandez’s success follows fellow trans athlete Verónica Garcia winning a track and filed event in Washington for the second year running.
Garcia won the class 2A 400-meter sprint at Mount Tahoma High School in Tacoma on Saturday (May 31).
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Warning: This article contains discussion of discrimination against the trans community which some readers may find distressing
A transgender athlete who won a school track race has issued a frank response to critics.
AB Hernandez from California, who identifies as a transgender woman, shared the podium alongside her fellow athletes after crushing the state’s high school track-and-field championship on May 31.
The 16-year-old, who joins the team at Jurupa Valley High School in Southern California, took home the gold for the triple jump, finishing with a final of 42 feet 2 inches, and shared first place with Kira Grant Hatcher, who jumped 40 feet 5 inches.
The California Interscholastic Federation altered the rules before the event, mandating that any competitors who lost to a trans athlete would not lose their ranking, meaning Hernandez’s performance would not affect or displace any other female winners.
AB Hernandez (centre) shared the podium at a high school track-and-field championship last month (KCRA 3)
The rule also allowed an additional biological female student athlete to compete in each category where Hernandez was set to perform.
However, despite the clarification in fairness, Hernandez’s involvement in the sport has sparked backlash over the last few months, with dozens of protesters turning up to track meets and before the competition to challenge her participation.
Now, the high school junior has spoken out with a simple message to her critics.
“It’s definitely crazy, I get a lot of hate comments, but I’m like, ‘I don’t care,’” she said in an interview with KCRA. “[I’m a] 16-year-old girl with a mad attitude. You think I’m going to care?”
The youngster slammed the protesters rocking up high school events as plain ‘weird’.
“It’s just weird at this point,” Hernandez said, and while demonstrators gathered around the stadium gates to protest, the teen said people were mostly supportive inside the event.
There were dozens of protestors at the event (KCRA 3)
“I wasn’t expecting any of it, to be honest. I was just expecting to go out there and compete alone, but the support was amazing,” she added.
“They really made my experience perfect. I will forever be grateful for them because they helped me get through the weekend.”
Hernandez also tied in the varsity high jump final against two girls, Jillene Wetteland and Lelanie Laruelle, where she again shared the podium with them due to the newly passed California policy.
“I did what I wanted to do,” Hernandez said. “My performance was all I wanted to be good. So all this backlash … I performed my best, so that’s all I cared about.”
The protests came following intense backlash over the federation’s handling of transgender athletes like Hernandez and their success, including from President Donald Trump who had threatened to pull the plug on funds to the Golden State over its policy.
Taking to his platform Truth Social, Trump wrote: “California, under the leadership of Radical Left Democrat Gavin Newscum [sic], continues to ILLEGALLY allow ‘MEN TO PLAY IN WOMEN’S SPORTS.'”
The rule change allowed the student athletes to share the podium (KCRA 3)
The POTUS ordered the state that federal funding would be ‘held back, maybe permanently’ unless California obeyed his February executive order to protect women’s sports.
Trump also had a heated debate with Maine governor Janet Mills over the issue earlier this year, accusing the state of breaking Title IX rules, which prohibits discrimination in education based on sex.
He threatened to withdraw federal funds for schools of around $250 million, though the White House later agreed to release the funds amid a legal challenge.
The Justice Department also announced plans last month that it would investigate if California’s School Success and Opportunity Act, which allows trans students to compete in women’s sport, is in conflict with Title IX.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, contact the LGBT national hotline at 888-843-4564, available Monday to Friday 4pm-12am ET and 12pm-5pm ET on Saturdays.
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Warning: This article contains discussion of discrimination against the trans community which some readers may find distressing.
A 17-year-old trans athlete has issued a powerful message to her critics after she was booed for winning a track and field championship for the second consecutive year.
Verónica Garcia won the class 2A 400-meter sprint at Mount Tahoma High School, in Tacoma, Washington – roughly a 45-minute drive from Seattle – on Saturday (May 31).
While the East Valley High School student was stretching off prior to the race starting, a man who was wearing a shirt that read ‘Save women’s sports’ on it with the American flag printed on it, could be heard antagonising the teen.
According to the Seattle Times, the man in question was sat close to the starting blocks and could be heard shouting ‘girls race’ and ‘let’s go girls’ over and over.
Verónica Garcia beat second-placed Lauren Matthew by almost a full second (X/Riley_Gaines_)
Verónica beat her nearest competitor by just a full second, West Valley junior Lauren Matthew – who was seen holding a sign after the race that read: “Washington State Track and Field Real Girls 2A 400m Champion.”
However, Verónica, whose time was 55.70 seconds, half a second faster than her score last year, issued a strong message to her critics while speaking with the Seattle Times.
“I’ll be honest, I kind of expect it,” she explained.
“But it maybe didn’t have their intended effect. It made me angry, but not angry as in, I wanted to give up, but angry as in, I’m going to push.
Verónica Garcia sent a defiant message out to her critics after retaining the class 2A 400-meter sprint (RunnerSpace)
“I’m going to put this in the most PG-13 way, I’m just going to say it’s a damn shame they don’t have anything else better to do. I hope they get a life. But oh well. It just shows who they are as people.”
She continued: “I’m really proud of myself. I did what I came to do, and that’s good enough for me.
“One of the things that Martin Luther King always pointed out is that you have to do what’s right. Even if there comes risk, you still have to do what’s right.”
Meanwhile, Lauren, who took home second place, told Spokesman-Review after the race: “I shouldn’t have to push myself to the point of where I’m about to, like, die in order to win.
“I know I’m gonna push myself to keep going, but I don’t want a man pushing me to have to go”, she added, misgendering Garcia.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, contact the LGBT national hotline at 888-843-4564, available Monday to Friday 4pm-12am ET and 12pm-5pm ET on Saturdays.
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Donald Trump has just signed new executive order further restricting trans care for minors
Donald Trump has ordered it be the policy of the US to ‘not fund, sponsor, promote, assist or support’ people transitioning
Warning: This article contains discussion of discrimination against the trans community which some readers may find distressing.
Donald Trump has signed an executive order to ‘protect children from chemical and surgical mutilation’.
Within 24 hours of being sworn in as the 47th President of the United States, Donald Trump wasted no time signing off on a list of executive orders, including an official policy declaring there are ‘only two genders’.
Since then, he’s signed a new executive order regarding the future of transgender people in the military, and yesterday (January 28), Trump signed off another executive order relating to transgender care.
Trump’s newest executive order on transgender care
Titled ‘Protecting children from chemical and surgical mutilation,’ the executive order accuses medical professionals of ‘maiming and sterilizing a growing number of impressionable children under the radical and false claim that adults can change a child’s sex through a series of irreversible medical interventions’.
Branding it a ‘dangerous trend,’ the executive order calls it a ‘stain on our Nation’s history’ and calls for it to ‘end’.
“Countless children soon regret that they have been mutilated and begin to grasp the horrifying tragedy that they will never be able to conceive children of their own or nurture their children through breastfeeding. Moreover, these vulnerable youths’ medical bills may rise throughout their lifetimes, as they are often trapped with lifelong medical complications, a losing war with their own bodies, and, tragically, sterilization,” it argues.
Trump orders it to be the policy of the US to ‘not fund, sponsor, promote, assist, or support the so-called “transition” of a child from one sex to another, and it will rigorously enforce all laws that prohibit or limit these destructive and life-altering procedures’.
Who’s impacted and what specific care will be restricted
Donald Trump is restricting transgender care (ROBERTO SCHMIDT/AFP via Getty Images)
The executive order notes by ‘child’, it means anyone under the age of 19.
Calling gender affirming care ‘chemical and surgical mutilation,’ the order states the policy will ultimately ban those under the age of 19 from the ‘use of puberty blockers, including GnRH agonists and other interventions, to delay the onset or progression of normally timed puberty in an individual who does not identify as his or her sex [and] the use of sex hormones, such as androgen blockers, estrogen, progesterone, or testosterone, to align an individual’s physical appearance with an identity that differs from his or her sex’.
The order will also see the ban for those under the age of 19 of any ‘surgical procedures that attempt to transform an individual’s physical appearance to align with an identity that differs from his or her sex or that attempt to alter or remove an individual’s sexual organs to minimize or destroy their natural biological functions’.
The order is aimed at cutting transgender support from federally-run insurance programs – including Medicaid and TRICARE for military families.
