ALBANY, N.Y. (NEXSTAR) — Independently, New York Attorney General Letitia James and the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) sued Nassau County on Monday. It's the NYCLU's second lawsuit against the county since County Executive Bruce Blakeman's February executive order concerning transgender athletes.
According to the Office of the Attorney General (OAG), they sued to invalidate what they called a transphobic and discriminatory law, as well as to prevent future attempts to enforce similar statutes. "The law directly conflicts with state laws protecting New Yorkers from discrimination based on their gender identity or expression," they said when announcing the lawsuit. "It discriminates against transgender girls and women, as well as teams that welcome them."
County Executive Blakeman had ordered that any application to use a Nassau County Park property for organized sports must gender designate their league or team for either:
Blakeman's order—which you can read at the bottom of this story—would deny a permit to any group that boasted more inclusive enrollment processes. It defined gender as one's biological anatomy at the time of their birth. (Transpeople and their allies generally use the acronyms AMAB—assigned male at birth—and AFAB—assigned female at birth—to mark these distinctions when necessary.) The order specified that sports for males could include "biological females" or AFAB people.
In March, famed transwoman and former male Olympian Caitlyn Jenner made it to New York to support the County Executive. But the NYCLU sued over that order, which the Nassau County Supreme Court eventually blocked in May. That's why Nassau County's Republican-majority legislature enacted a local law with similar language, which Blakeman signed on Monday.
"Bruce Blakeman's decision to sign legislation widely criticized as discriminatory, especially in the immediate aftermath of an attempted assassination of a former president, is deeply troubling," read a statement from Nassau County Minority Leader Delia DeRiggi-Whitton, a Democrat. "If Republicans are genuinely serious about lowering the political temperature, they should stop bullying and pushing legislation that scapegoats groups of people for their political gain. Instead, they should focus on actual governance and helping the people they were elected to serve."
Local Law 121-24—“Fairness for Women and Girls in Sports”—subjects girls and women to unequal treatment, essentially barring transwomen from playing on women's teams while allowing transmen to play on men's teams, per the OAG and NYCLU. They argue that it would affect all gender identities—and not just people who live in Nassau County. Cisgender people or players on traveling teams would also be subject to invasive verification requirements for permission to play at over 100 county parks, fields, and courts.
The Long Island Roller Rebels, a local women’s recreational roller derby league that welcomes trans women, took part in both NYCLU lawsuits. “With this shameful law, our lawmakers are joining the effort to deprive people of these benefits while sending the message that trans people do not belong in Nassau County,” read a written statement from the president of the Long Island Roller Rebels, who uses they/them pronouns and goes by the skate name Curly Fry. “Much like we defeated the transphobic executive order, we will fight this new law and ensure all community members can join a sports team and feel welcome.”
The NYCLU argued that the law would violate privacy, intrude on bodily autonomy, and out transgender people. “Nassau County’s relentless efforts to shut transgender women and girls out of sports will leave a lasting stain on the County’s government and legislature,” said Gabriella Larios, staff attorney at the New York Civil Liberties Union. “This latest round of hateful legislation is unacceptable and we won’t let it stand in New York.”
“With this law, Nassau County is once again attempting to exclude transgender girls and women from participating in sporting events while claiming to support fairness," James said in a statement. "Here in New York, every person has the right to be exactly who they are free from discrimination."
New York’s Civil and Human Rights laws don't allow discrimination based on sex or gender, and the State Constitution and Municipal Home Rule Law say that county law can't conflict with state law. Plus, the New York State Education Department says that students should participate in sports that align with their gender identity. You can report gender-based discrimination to the Civil Rights Bureau.
In early May, ex-Long Island Rep. Lee Zeldin led a rally against "Proposition 1" at the State Capitol. Joined by conservative trans rights figurehead Riley Gaines, the former Republican gubernatorial candidate argued that they were saving girls' sports.
You can read the text of the Proposal Number One amendment—formerly the New York Equal Rights Amendment—on the Board of Elections website. It's on the ballot in New York in November, adding discrimination protections based on ethnicity, national origin, age, disability, and sex, including sexual orientation, gender identity, and pregnancy to the State Constitution.
According to Zeldin's analysis, it could:
Take a look at the original executive order:
Check out the lawsuit from the OAG:
Read on for the lawsuit from the Long Island Roller Rebels:
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