Locals react to Trump’s threat against transgender athlete policy
Adrik Vargas
IMPERIAL COUNTY, Calif. (KYMA, KECY) – California allows transgender students to join the teams that feel right to them, but President Trump warned on his social media that if the state keeps this law, federal funding could be cut.
Locals say this isn’t just about sports, it’s about how LGBTQ+ young people feel they belong.
Raul Ureña, the first openly transgender mayor in Calexico, says this issue goes deeper than sports.
“There is even less justification for exclusion at a public school level, but there is a lot more damage to those students who are openly transgender especially at young ages,” said Ureńa.
They also talked about how this fight affects queer youth in small towns like theirs. Recently, the National LGBTQ Youth Suicide Hotline was shut down, which adds to the worry.
Ureña said, “It sends a very clear message, we are going to take away your avenues of inclusion, which are your rights as an American, and we’re also going to take way the suicide hotline for when you face a mental challenge because of that.”