Lia Thomas calls his female critics 'fake feminists' in conversation comparing treatment of men in women's sports with historic mistreatment of black people



Lia Thomas suggested on a recent podcast that women whose support for so-called "trans women" is conditional are "fake feminists" and cast his critics as bigots. He further stressed that real feminists should be interested in breaking down "patriarchal ideals of what a woman is," especially if those ideals link womanhood to biology.

Schuyler Bailar, the transvestite athlete who hosted the podcast on which Thomas appeared, raised the matter of a February 2022 letter written by Olympic champion Nancy Hogshead-Makar to the University of Pennsylvania and the Ivy League on behalf of 16 members of the school's female swim team.

The letter asked that the school not challenge the NCAA's new transgender athlete participation policies, as they would exclude men who experienced puberty, such as Lia Thomas, from competing against women in the March NCAA championships, reported CNN.

"We fully support Lia Thomas in her decision to affirm her gender identity and to transition from a man to a woman. Lia has every right to live her life authentically," said the letter.

It went on to say, "However, we also recognize that when it comes to sports competition, that the biology of sex is a separate issue from someone’s gender identity. Biologically, Lia holds an unfair advantage over competition in the women’s category, as evidenced by her rankings that have bounced from #462 as a male to #1 as a female."

Thomas spoke on "Dear Schuyler" to the letter, saying it is "frustrating in the regard that they're like, 'oh we respect Lia as a woman, as a trans woman, whatever, we respect her identity, we just don't think it's fair.' And I think you can't really have that sort of half support where you're like 'oh, I respect you as a woman here but not here.'"

"You can't do that, you can't sort of break down me as a person into little pieces," added the former male athlete.

Bailar noted that the fight to protect women's sports has become a big movement, executed "under the guise of feminism. Oh, we're just feminists. We're just fighting for women."

Thomas agreed, later saying, "They're using the guise of feminism to sort of push transphobic beliefs. I think a lot of people in that camp sort of carry an implicit bias against trans people, but don’t want to, I guess, fully manifest or speak that out. And so they try to just play it off as this sort of half-support."

After arguing that feminists who sought to keep men out of women's sports were ideologically incoherent, Bailar likened the corresponding claim of seeking fairness on the basis of sex to the ambivalence of racists about black women competing in sports.

"Please tell me why are all these women, you know, in tears? Why are they crying? What is the pain that trans women are causing them? And the answer was something about opportunities being taken away," said Bailar, adding, "It was the same exact arguments that came up when black women began to be in sports. ... You don't want a woman who doesn't look like you, perhaps, or who is fitting your version of womanhood to win."

Thomas, having ostensibly agreed with Bailar's remarks, suggested that "transphobia in sports" should be contextualized more broadly in "patriarchal ideals of what a woman is and who can be a woman."

The Independent Council on Women’s Sports responded to the podcast, tweeting, "We agree with Lia Thomas on one thing: 'You can't really have that sort of half-support.' We do not in ANY way support the injustice of male participation in women's sports. We are all in for female athletes. Not half. ALL in."

\u201cWe agree with Lia Thomas on one thing:\n\u201cYou can\u2019t really have that sort of half-support\u201d\n\nWe do not in ANY way support the injustice of male participation in women\u2019s sports. We are all in for female athletes. Not half. ALL in.\u201d
— ICONS Women (@ICONS Women) 1682486917

Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Co.) wrote, "There is nothing anti-feminist about saying that Lia Thomas, a man, should not be participating in sports with women. Feminists, and all women, should be outraged that a MAN has the nerve to tell them how they should feel about him invading their spaces and sports competitions."

"What a joke," wrote Piers Morgan. "There's nothing more 'anti-feminist' than trans athletes like Lia Thomas using the massive advantages of their male biology to beat women at sport."

TheBlaze previously reported Thomas was a middling performer on the University of Pennsylvania men's swimming team until he starting taking hormones in 2019 and competing against women.

He went onto crush records set by females in the 500-yard freestyle at the 2022 NCAA championships and tie with All-American all-female swim star Riley Gaines for fifth last April in the women's 200-meter. According to Gaines, it was around that time Thomas exposed his male genitalia in a women's locker room.

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House Republicans introduce resolution declaring Emma Weyant the 'rightful winner' of NCAA title over trans swimmer Lia Thomas



House Republicans introduced a new resolution Wednesday to recognize Olympic silver medalist Emma Weyant as the "rightful winner" of the 500-yard freestyle event at the NCAA Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships earlier this month. Weyant was the runner-up to transgender swimmer Lia Thomas. The resolution was introduced by Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.). and cosponsored by 21 House Republicans.

Boebert wrote on Twitter, "I’ve had enough of the woke foolishness. I’m leading a House Resolution to declare Emma Weyant the winner of the NCAA Women’s 500 yard freestyle swim. You cannot be a man and win a women’s swimming race."

"Emma Weyant was the fastest woman competing in the 2022 NCAA Division I Women’s 500-Yard Freestyle, but her first-place win was stolen by a mediocre man who couldn’t cut it in men’s swimming," Boebert said in a press release.

"Emma is a world-class student-athlete whose strong performances in the Summer Olympics and 2022 NCAA Division I Women’s Swimming and Diving Championship speak for themselves," Boebert added. "These victories, coupled with her leadership of other women on her team and her dedication to excellence are worthy of Congressional recognition. I will keep working to save women's sports from woke ideology threatening to strip women of a level playing field."

Rep. Vicky Hartzler (R-Mo.) proclaimed, "Emma Weyant worked her whole life to compete in the NCAA women's swimming championships — only to be beaten by a biological male. This is a travesty for women's sports and sets a horrific precedent for our future generations of female athletes. As a high school athlete and former track coach, I am proud to be a champion for women's sports and stand up against men stealing their medals and erasing their years of hard work. Emma beat every woman in her race and deserves to be recognized as the rightful winner of the NCAA Division I Women’s 500-Yard Freestyle."

Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-S.C.) declared, "The University of Virginia’s Emma Weyant, a world-class student-athlete and Olympic medalist, is the true winner of the women’s NCAA 500-yard freestyle. Emma’s victory was unfortunately overshadowed by a biological male who took home first place due to an arbitrary, anti-science definition of gender pushed by the radical Left. To deny Emma’s win is to ignore the fact that women have two X chromosomes and certain biological distinctions that disqualify biological males like Lia (William) Thomas from being a contender in a women’s swim meet. Only biological females belong in women’s sports, and it is unethical and unfair for a biological male to rob the prize from the legitimate victor of a women’s race."

Rep. Andrew Clyde (R-Ga.) stated, "Emma Weyant was unfairly robbed of her true NCAA title – all because a biological male, Will 'Lia' Thomas, placed first in a women’s only race. The Left's war on women is dangerous, illogical, and flat-out evil. We cannot allow woke nonsense to shatter dreams and undermine legitimate women’s accomplishments, which is why I’m proud to join Congresswoman Boebert in correcting this injustice."

Rep. Diana Harshbarger professed, "I am deeply disappointed that far-left ideology has gone so far as to help a man steal a deserved victory from a woman. What a regressive and dangerous lesson to teach our children. The only possible winner of the NCAA Division I Women’s 500-yard Freestyle competition is the woman who finished first, Emma Weyant."

Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) simply said, "Emma won. Everyone gets that. So Congress should say it."

Earlier this month, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a proclamation that declared Weyant the "real winner" of the NCAA Women's 500-yard freestyle swim competition. Weyant – who is a native of Sarasota, Florida – was named the "best women's swimmer in the 500-yard freestyle" by DeSantis.

"By allowing men to compete in women's sports, the NCAA is destroying opportunities for women, making a mockery of its championships, and perpetuating a fraud," DeSantis argued.

"She trains, I mean, to compete at that level is very, very difficult. And you don't just roll out of bed and do it," DeSantis said of Weyant. "That takes grit, that takes determination, and she's been an absolute superstar and she had the fastest time of any woman in college athletics."

Weyant – a 20-year-old freshman at the University of Virginia – finished second to Thomas from the University of Pennsylvania in the 500-yard freestyle. Weyant finished the race with the third-fastest time in UVA history, according to the university. However, Thomas finished the race 1.75 seconds faster than Weyant. With the victory, Thomas became the first transgender athlete to win a NCAA Division I title.

"Weyant, 20, won the silver medal in the women’s 400-meter individual medley at the 2020 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo. The Florida native is also a three-time U.S. National Champion, a two-time Junior Pan Pacific medalist and a four-time Florida High School Athletic Association 4A State Champion in the 500 free and 200 individual medley," Fox News reported.

Weyant was also named a four-time scholar-athlete, four-time high school All-American, and three-time MVP, according to the University of Virginia.

Thomas – a biological male – is a fifth-year senior who swam for three years on the men's team before transitioning to female and going through hormone-replacement therapy.

In February, 16 members of the University of Pennsylvania women's swim team sent a letter to school and Ivy League officials stating that Thomas should not be allowed to compete against biological females.

"We fully support Lia Thomas in her decision to affirm her gender identity and to transition from a man to a woman. Lia has every right to live her life authentically," the letter read. "However, we also recognize that when it comes to sports competition, that the biology of sex is a separate issue from someone's gender identity."

"Biologically, Lia holds an unfair advantage over competition in the women’s category, as evidenced by her rankings that have bounced from #462 as a male to #1 as a female," the UPenn swimmers said.

Sixteen members of the Penn women's swim team ask the NCAA to protect them from men in women's sports



The University of Pennsylvania women’s swim team has finally had enough.

The sixteen members of the University of Pennsylvania women’s swim team sent a letter to school and Ivy League officials asking them to prohibit Penn’s trans female swimmer from competing in the NCAA championships, reports the Washington Post.

“We fully support Lia Thomas in her decision to affirm her gender identity and to transition from a man to a woman. Lia has every right to live her life authentically,” wrote the swim team members, “However, we also recognize that when it comes to sports competition, that the biology of sex is a separate issue from someone’s gender identity.”

Lia Thomas — formerly known as ‘Will’ — competed on men’s swim teams for years. He was even a part of the Penn men’s swim team before deciding to start taking hormones to try and transition into becoming a woman. Thomas, who is actively suppressing his testosterone levels, benefits immensely in competition since he has the skeletal and muscle structure of a grown man.

“Biologically, Lia holds an unfair advantage over competition in women’s category, as evidence by her ranking that have bounced from #462 as a male to #1 as a female,” the letter continues, “If she were to be eligible to compete against us, she could now break Penn, Ivy, and NCAA Women’s Swimming records; feats she could never have done as a male athlete.”

Likely fearing retribution, the women who wrote the letter did not attach their names or deliver it themselves. They had Nancy Hogshead-Makar, a 1984 Olympic swimming gold medalist, lawyer, and leading women’s sports advocate deliver it on their behalf.

In a phone interview, Hogshead-Makar confirmed that she sent the letter because the swimmers were told “we would be removed from the team or that we would never get a job offer” if they spoke out against the inclusion of a man in women’s sports.

Previously, a father of a University of Pennsylvania women’s swim team member said that members of the team “realize that they will never, ever be able to beat” Thomas in competition. The father continued by stating that Thomas “is most likely going to be representing you and I and all other Americans at the Olympics,” since his success on the women’s team will prevent his female team members from earning spots on the Olympic women’s swim team.

Expressing dismay the father asked, “What do you say to your daughter? You got Lia up on the blocks, taking a spot from a cisgender woman on the Olympic team. How do I tell my daughter that could be you one day? You can’t. You can never be her.”

Recently, a team member of Thomas pointed out that despite Thomas having male genitalia, as he is a man, he shares a locker room with his female teammates.

The team member said, “It’s definitely awkward because Lia still has male body parts and is still attracted to women.”

“It’s really upsetting because Lia doesn’t seem to care how it makes anyone else feel,” the swimmer continued, “The 35 of us are just supposed to accept being uncomfortable in our own space and locker room for, like, the feelings of one.”

Both the father of the swim team member and the swimmer expressing concern over a man in the women’s locker room spoke on the condition of anonymity fearing that their statements would cause damage to the lives of themselves and their loved ones.

Hopefully, the team’s letter will encourage school and NCAA officials to enforce policies that treat these women fairly.