WASHINGTON – Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson this week signed into law a measure that requires athletes to compete in school sports teams and events that match their biological sex, making it the second state this year after Mississippi to ratify a law protecting women’s sports. Emilie Kao, director of the DeVos Center for Religion and Civil Society at The Heritage Foundation, offered the following reaction:

“Arkansas should be commended for standing up to a radical LGBT lobby to protect the fairness in women’s and girls’ sports. Too many state lawmakers have caved to these special interests and forced women and girls to unfairly compete with boys and men, who have obvious and significant physical advantages. It’s encouraging that lawmakers in 29 states have introduced bills that protect women’s and girls’ sports.”

“In states that already have sexual orientation and gender identity laws and ordinances, we have seen girls who have lost sports competitions and scholarships to males who ‘identify’ as girls.

“Every person should be treated with dignity and respect, and no one should be unjustly discriminated against. This includes girls and women who shouldn’t be forced to compete against males and who should have privacy and safety in single-sex facilities.”

“Efforts to impose extremist ideology on every American—especially through the Equality Act—will make changes to our education and health care system in ways that allow irreversible harm to children.”

“Parents, concerned citizens, and lawmakers around the country have signed  the Promise to America’s Children, which calls for protecting  safe and fair athletic competitions. Governor Hutchinson and other lawmakers are doing the right thing by pushing  back against policies that endanger our children’s minds, bodies, and familial relationships.”