SJSU's Brooke Slusser Discusses ‘Hate’ She's Received Since Speaking Out About Transgender Teammate

When Brooke Slusser chose to speak out against transgender athletes in women's sports, she knew she'd experience some pushback. Now, she's finding out just how intense that pushback can be.

Slusser is a teammate of Blaire Fleming, a trans-identifying male on the San Jose State women's volleyball team. Last month, Slusser joined more than a dozen other female athletes in suing the NCAA for Title IX violations for allowing male athletes to compete in women's sports and to utilize their locker rooms.

EXCLUSIVE: SJSU's Brooke Slusser Speaks Out On Fight Against NCAA: ‘Title IX Exists For A Reason’

Transgender volleyball player Blaire Fleming has caused a rift in the Mountain West Conference.

(SJSU Athletics)

Appearing on OutKick the Morning with Charly Arnolt on Monday, Slusser discussed some of the negative feedback she's received since standing up for fairness in women's sports.

"I'm getting emails on my school email from people from our school, just being like, 'This isn't okay. You need to stop this. Like, you need to stop being a transphobe and a bigot' and all of these things," Slusser said. "So yes, there has been a lot of hate that comes with it, and a few scary ones. You never know what people are going to do out there."

Scary, indeed. On Oct. 2, one of Slusser's SJSU teammates received a threatening direct message on social media, warning the players to "look out" if they continued playing for the Spartans. The next day, police safeguarded Moby Arena as San Jose State arrived to take on Colorado State.

"That just does not feel right," Brooke told OutKick's Alejandro Avila at the time. "It’s one thing for me to take a stand for something I truly believe in. However, the last thing I’d ever want is for this to affect my teammates. That was the hardest part."

No High Fives? Some Opponents Give Brooke Slusser The Cold Shoulder

The senior setter told Charly that since speaking out publicly against male athletes in women's sports, she has noticed a difference in the way others act toward her. And one interaction with an opposing team was particularly eye-opening.

"When we played UNLV, post that game, I think maybe two girls high-fived me going across the net saying, ‘good game,’" Slusser recalled. "And I think that was the first time it kind of hit me. I was like, 'Wow, there might be a bigger group of people out there that don't agree with me and don't like me for what I'm doing.' 

"And so I think that kind of opened my eyes a little bit to how much hate people might have for me."

But not all the response has been negative. In fact, many opposing players share Slusser's views on the issue. So far, five teams (Southern Utah, Boise State, Wyoming, Utah State and Nevada) have opted to forfeit their matches against SJSU in protest of trans player Blaire Fleming.

EXCLUSIVE: Nevada Players Vote To Forfeit Against SJSU, Transgender Player Despite School's Statement

And it's that support — coupled with a desire to preserve women's sports for the future — that keeps Slusser in the fight. Even if not everyone agrees.

"At the end of the day, when you're doing something that feels so right, you just kind of got to take the blows and move on," she said.