Women's College Team, With Trans Player, Refuses To Play Christian School Over 'Safety' Concerns
The Vancouver Island University women's basketball team, which has a transgender player leading the team in points, has refused to play against a Christian college, alleging that the Christian school harassed the transgender player during an October contest.
Vancouver Island released a statement saying that its players don't feel safe playing against Columbia Bible College this weekend.
"Intimidation, harassment, and discrimination have no place in athletics," the statement read, according to Fox News. "VIU stands in full support of our student-athletes and affirms the right of all athletes to compete in an environment that prioritizes their safety and well-being."
CBC denied the allegations in a statement to Fox News Digital.
"This was surprising news to us," the statement read. "CBC stands for safe play for all. Accusations that CBC, its coaches, players, and fans are a safety threat are simply untrue and misinformed."
A women's college basketball team in Vancouver, Canada, which has a transgender player, refused to play against a Christian school opponent, saying the players don't feel safe.
(Stock Photo – Getty images)
A Canadian transgender basketball player made interesting claims in an Instagram video in late October
On Oct. 30, Harriette Mackenzie, an openly transgender athlete (who was born male) competing in women's basketball, posted a video on Instagram. In the video, Mackenzie, a 6'2" forward who is the tallest player on the VIU roster, accuses CBC of a hard foul during the Oct. 26 match and says the girls' coach "applauded."
Mackenzie also alleges that the previous night, the CBC coach – Taylor Clagett – went on a "tirade" to a Vancouver Island staffer complaining about the team having a male on its women's basketball team.
Mackenzie additionally claims that, despite being male, the trans athlete is at a "disadvantage" to "cis women" because Mackenzie began to transition in "kindergarten."
It's important to note that Mackenzie leads Vancouver Island – which is 11-1 and ranked fifth nationally in the CCAA – in points, rebounds and blocks. Mackenzie ranks second in the PACWEST – the conference in which both VIU and CBC compete – in points, and is third in rebounding. VIU is currently in first place in the PACWEST.
In the video, Mackenzie shows the play where the athlete claims to have been flagrantly fouled "without a play on the ball in sight." This appears to be a bit of an exaggeration, given that players were battling for position for an impending rebound.
Mackenzie also claims that Claggett was "applauding" the foul. That also appears to be an exaggeration. Following the foul, Claggett clapped her hands together three times. This has all the earmarks of a typical "coach clap" that many basketball coaches do after a play.
Regarding the "tirade" to which Mackenzie refers, Claggett posted on Instagram that her "intention has nothing to do with a specific athlete, but instead, the safety of female athletes in their sport."
The PACWEST released a statement on the matter on November 1.
"The PACWEST is aware that participation of transgender student-athletes has recently received public attention. As a member of the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA), the PACWEST follows national policies and procedures for all sports that lead into CCAA championships, including the CCAA's policy on transgender student-athlete participation," the statement read.
"Furthermore, the PACWEST encourages everyone to engage in education through the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport (CCES) with their findings around diversity and inclusion and transgender people in sport. Creating a safe and inclusive environment for all participants is a shared responsibility."
In a fascinating turn of events, a women's basketball team with a transgender player refused to compete due to "safety" concerns
In the United States, we've seen many brave women standing up for their rights in sports and refusing to compete against transgender players due to the inherent risk of competing against a male.
This happened most recently in Mountain West volleyball when six schools canceled a total of nine games – including a conference tournament match – due to San Jose State having transgender player Blaire Fleming.
The University of Nevada players released a statement, specifically citing their safety concerns when competing against Fleming.
Several schools forfeited women's volleyball matches rather than compete against transgender SJSU player Blaire Fleming.
(Getty Images)
In this instance, though, the players on the team with the transgender player claim to feel "unsafe" playing against the Christian school.
In the statement given to Fox News Digital, CBC said it had prepared additional safety measures for the game that was set to include the transgender athlete.
"CBC has a reputation for providing a safe environment, however, out of an abundance of caution, CBC in cooperation with PACWEST, developed an event safety plan specifically for these games. We received input from VIU and the Abbotsford Police Department. This plan included extra security among other measures," the statement read.
Despite that, every player on the Vancouver Island University women's basketball team signed a letter saying they didn't feel safe.
But in Canada, which is a very left-wing country, apparently it's the transgender athletes who don't feel safe competing against women.