Non-binary, two-spirit Dem Rep claims Minnesota bill banning boys from girls' sports is 'state-sanctioned genocide'

A Minnesota state representative referred to a bill prohibiting biological men from women's sports as "state-sanctioned genocide." Rep. Liish Kozlowski, who self-identifies as two-spirit and nonbinary, made the remarks on Monday during a debate on the state's "Preserving Girls' Sports Act," which ultimately failed to pass.

The bill stated that "only female students may participate in an elementary or secondary school level athletic team or sport that an educational institution has restricted to women and girls." It defined a female as "biologically determined by genetics and defined with respect to an individual's reproductive system." The bill is in line with executive orders signed by Trump, including one that directs federal funding to be pulled from schools if they allow biological males to compete in women's sports.

Rep. Kozlowski, a Democrat, claimed the act was "a bill to bully trans girls and non-binary kids," Fox News reported.
 

"Make no mistake," Kozlowski said on the House floor, "This is just another version of state-sanctioned bullying and genocide."

The "Preserving Girls' Sports Act" was struck down with a vote of 67 affirmatives to 66 negatives, with all Democrats voting against the legislation. The legislation needed 68 affirmative votes to pass.

The bill brought both proponents and protesters to the Minnesota State Capitol on Monday. Not all legislators agreed with Rep. Kozlowski's remarks.

Republican Rep. Peggy Scott, who sponsored the act, argued on the floor: "We cannot allow our girls to be vulnerable to losing their spot on the team, being on the podium, or to injury by a male teammate or male competitor. That is not safe and that is not fair to our girls."

Rep. Marion Rarick, also a Republican, threw support behind the bill, saying, "We have women and girls around the world that are so afraid of competing with biological men that they are dropping out of sports."

Other Democratic legislators sided with Kozlowski, including Rep. Brion Curran who claimed that the state must "not be complacent with this hateful and dangerous anti-trans rhetoric" and that "all children deserve to play." Curran is the chair for the Minnesota Queer Legislators Caucus.

Last month, Trump's executive order directed the Department of Education to notify schools that biological men are prohibited from participating on women's sports teams. The Minnesota State High School League declared that it would continue to allow trans athletes to play in girls' sports in defiance of the order. US Attorney General Pam Bondi wrote in a letter last month that education establishments that failed to comply with the executive order would lose federal funding.