LGBTQ leaders were swift to denounce California Governor Gavin Newsom for his remarks on the debut episode of his new podcast during which he said it was "deeply unfair" to allow transgender athletes to participate in female college and youth sports.
The affinity group for out lawmakers in the state Legislature called Newsom's comments sickening and anti-trans, while gay state Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) criticized the governor for having on the inaugural edition of his "This is Gavin Newsom" podcast as a guest Charlie Kirk, the conservative provocateur and founder of Turning Point USA who is a vocal supporter of Republican President Donald Trump and routinely attacks the transgender community.
During their discussion, which was released online March 6, Newsom told Kirk that he "agreed" with him when it comes to the issue of requiring trans athletes to play on sports teams based on the sex they were assigned at birth.
Kirk told Newsom that, "You, as the governor, should step out and say 'no, no.'" To which Newsom replied, "Right... I think it's an issue of fairness. I completely agree with you on that. It's deeply unfair."
Telling Kirk that he was "completely aligned" with him on the issue, Newsom blamed California's policy requiring trans female student athletes to be allowed to play on women's sports teams to a bill signed by his predecessor, former governor Jerry Brown, more than a decade ago.
"It turns out in 2014, years before I was governor, there was a law established that established the legal principles that allow trans athletes in women's sports. The issue of fairness is completely legit. I completely align with you, we have to acknowledge it," said Newsom.
California Legislative LGBTQ Caucus chair gay Assemblymember Chris Ward (D-San Diego), and vice chair lesbian state Senator Caroline Menjivar (D-San Fernando Valley) were quick to condemn Newsom's "anti-transgender remarks" in a statement released Thursday morning.
"Sometimes Gavin Newsom goes for the Profile in Courage, sometimes not. We woke up profoundly sickened and frustrated by these remarks," stated Ward and Menjivar. "All students deserve the academic and health benefits of sports activity, and until Donald Trump began obsessing about it, playing on a team consistent with one's gender has not been a problem since the standard was passed in 2013."
Wiener, who chaired the San Francisco Democratic Party for two years during Newsom's tenure as the city's mayor, also criticized the governor for his remarks.
"The Governor has had many courageous moments over the decades supporting LGBTQ people, including helping turbo-charge the marriage equality movement, protecting LGBTQ kids against forced outing and criminalization, and protecting trans people from criminalization in other states. He has taken significant political hits for doing so. I and so many will be forever grateful for that courage," noted Wiener. "This is not one of those moments. Charlie Kirk is a vile bigot, and standing with him on this issue is profoundly disturbing."
On her popular newsletter and website Erin In The Morning, transgender journalist and advocate Erin Reed also called out Newsom for inviting Kirk onto his podcast.
"When Newsom platforms someone like Charlie Kirk, he isn't fostering a 'discussion' on transgender people in sports – he is handing a known hate monger a microphone to denigrate an already vulnerable community," wrote Reed. "That's the real objective. Newsom isn't engaging in open dialogue or debate; he is recalibrating his political stance to make targeting transgender people seem palatable, selling that shift to his base as a strategic necessity. And he's doing it by giving one of the most notorious anti-LGBTQ+ extremists a seat at the table."
Newsom defended Kirk as guest
In an email promoting his podcast sent out Thursday, Newsom defended having Kirk as a guest.
"Now you may be wondering, what the hell am I doing talking with Charlie Kirk – one of the key architects of the MAGA Movement? Well, this is not going to be your typical podcast," wrote Newsom. "It's not unlike how I went on Sean Hannity's show and debated Ron DeSantis on Fox News. We're going to be talking to people we agree with, and also people we disagree with."
The Bay Area Reporter reached out to several transgender leaders in the Golden State for comment about Newsom's remarks. They either have yet to respond or declined to comment because they had not heard the governor's podcast.
Former San Francisco supervisor Bevan Dufty, a gay dad to a young adult trans son who was an ally of Newsom's at City Hall, noted that the governor made no mention of having spoken to families like his own or to trans athletes before staking out his position against them on the podcast.
"What's most concerning is that there was no mention of the Governor talking with young people and parents who are the most affected by the statement he issued today," Dufty told the B.A.R. "There is so much that's broken in our country and our state. And this is what's at the top of the list? The lack of humanity towards a very vulnerable population will put more trans youth at risk for suicide and isolation."
Tony Hoang, the gay executive director of Equality California, stated that the statewide LGBTQ civil rights organization is "profoundly disappointed and angered by Governor Newsom's comments about transgender youth and their ability to participate in sports. Transgender kids – like all kids – deserve the chance to play sports alongside their teammates and learn important values like leadership, teamwork, and sportsmanship. Transgender young people deserve to be treated with dignity and respect."
Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson also expressed deep concerns about Newsom's comments.
"When LGBTQ+ lives are under attack, real leaders don't hedge–they fight. Across this country, extremists are stripping away rights, banning books, and targeting trans kids just for being who they are. This is not the time for political calculations or playing it safe–it's time to be bold, to stand up, and to say unequivocally: we will protect LGBTQ+ people with everything we've got," stated Robinson, a queer woman who leads the national LGBTQ rights organization. "The fight for equality has never been easy, but history doesn't remember those who waver–it remembers those who refuse to back down. Our message to Gov. Newsom and all leaders across the country is simple: The path to 2028 isn't paved with the betrayal of vulnerable communities–it's built on the courage to stand up for what's right and do the hard work to actually help the American people."
Newsom's comments come as he is widely expected to run for president in 2028. It is the latest example of him striking a more moderate or center-right position as he attempts to mold his national reputation ahead of any campaign for the White House.
Gabriel Haaland, a trans resident of Asheville, North Carolina who was a former president of San Francisco's progressive Harvey Milk LGBTQ Democratic Club, told the B.A.R. that Newsom's comments come off as "a nasty way" to launch a presidential bid. He chastised Newsom for falling into a "Republican trap of talking about trans issues" and not about what truly matters to Americans, like the sky-high prices of eggs and groceries.
"We are 1% of the population. Why is he focused on us" asked Haaland, who back in the late 1990s and early 2000s worked for a labor union and didn't know Newsom well when he was in local office. "I really resent him stoking the fires of bigotry when we are tragically under attack and in physical danger."
Despite his earning wide plaudits for bucking state law shortly into his first year as San Francisco mayor in 2004 by ordering city officials to marry same-sex couples, in addition to numerous pro-LGBTQ positions and high-profile appointments he has made as governor, Newsom has also received criticism for vetoing a number of LGBTQ bills during his gubernatorial tenure.
Just last fall he axed legislation that would have established a statewide commission on LGBTQ issues and another bill that would have required various medical boards in California expedite the medical licensure of out-of-state doctors who provide gender-affirming care. Two years ago, he vetoed a bill that would have mandated state judges hearing custody suits to take into consideration the needs of trans youth, particularly if their parents or legal guardians were affirming of the child's gender identity.
The issue of trans sports participation has roiled politics and courthouses in recent years. Both straight and trans student athletes have filed lawsuits over the matter, while Democrats in the U.S. Senate earlier this week defeated a bill that had been passed by the House and would have banned transgender youth participation in sports on teams that align with their gender identity, as the B.A.R. reported.
Last month, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi warned three state attorneys general – including California's – they must comply with Trump's executive order on transgender girls and women's participation in female sports. The federal Education Department also announced February 12 an investigation of the California Interscholastic Federation – the state's governing body of high school sports – as a result of its current pro-trans athlete policies.
Both stemmed from Trump's executive order he signed February 5 titled "Keeping Men out of Women's Sports," which states it is U.S. policy to rescind all federal 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. 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."
It is being challenged by trans students and their families in federal court.
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