Department Of Homeland Security To Restrict Visas Of Trans Athletes
With an eye to the 2028 Olympics, policies are being updated to prevent trans women from entering the U.S. to compete.
Featured image: Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images
On April 4, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced plans to restrict transgender women from entering the U.S. to compete in elite women’s sports.
While not using the word, “transgender” directly, USCIS references Trump’s Executive Order 14201, “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports”. It has directed the Secretary of Homeland Security to craft policies to restrict certain categories of visa issuance to “male athletes” (the agency’s term for trans women). USCIS defines these athletes as “aliens” of “extraordinary” or “exceptional ability”. In determining visa eligibility, the agency will view it a negative factor if “a male athlete has been competing against women,” and will consider “whether the alien is among the small percentage at the very top of the field.”
“Men do not belong in women’s sports. USCIS is closing the loophole for foreign male athletes whose only chance at winning elite sports is to change their gender identity and leverage their biological advantages against women,” USCIS Spokesperson Matthew Tragesser said in a DHS statement. “It’s a matter of safety, fairness, respect, and truth that only female athletes receive a visa to come to the U.S. to participate in women’s sports. The Trump Administration is standing up for the silent majority who’ve long been victims of leftist policies that defy common sense.”
The 2028 LA Olympics has been in conservative crosshairs well ahead of Trump’s second go at the Oval Office. The way it will play out – consulates around the globe will be made to deny visa applications to trans athletes. In keeping with the EO, sex will be defined as only male or female, and those deemed to have “misrepresented” their gender on applications will also be denied.
In February, back when signing that Order, Trump pressed the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to promote best interests of female athletes “by ensuring that eligibility for participation in women’s sporting events is determined according to sex and not gender identity or testosterone reduction.” At that time, the EO also laid the groundwork for further review and adjustments of policies around admission to the U.S. This is exactly what see playing out now.
