Letters: Mike DeWine is no hero. He stomped on rights of non-trans women and girls
Mike DeWine betrayed non-trans women, girls
Gov. Mike DeWine trampled the rights of all those assigned female at birth with his veto of House Bill 68.
In his "careful consideration" of this bill, he admittedly ignored the part that would prevent those assigned male at birth from participating in sports for girls and women.
More: Mike DeWine is being called 'child mutilator.' Veto of unholy bill shows that's far from true
In addition to squashing the rights women fought hard to acquire via Title IX, his veto will allow those who are biologically and physically stronger, taller, faster, have heavier bone structure, more fast twitch muscle fibers, a different center of gravity, etc. to compete against those assigned female at birth.
And, allow them in female locker rooms.
Women who have played sports, parents of girls who play sports, and any adult with common sense — demand that this veto be overturned. If not some pretty serious events will be coming.
Don't fail children: Overriding DeWine's veto will greenlight hate of trans kids inside, outside of their homes
Think about a 16-year-old trans female slide tackling a 15-year-old girl during a soccer game.
The Ohio High School Athletic Association is not going to do anything to protect these girls. In April, OHSAA said 19 trans females were on girls' sports teams in the last eight years.
That means 19 people assigned girl at birth were denied their right to participate in female gender sports. Perhaps gender affirming care and sports participation should have not been part of the same house bill.
However, they were and are the best thing for the integrity of sports for biological females is to overturn this veto.
Linda Scovern, Westerville
Biden has proven his worth
As we look at this year’s presidential race, it’s easy to get lost in the anti-democratic trash talk of the GOP but here are just a few (of the many) positive things Joe Biden and his administration have accomplished in the past three years:
During the global pandemic of 2020 Joe Biden decisively won both the popular and the electoral vote with U.S. courts conclusively confirming his win and with no election fraud ever found.
He assumed his role as duly elected president even when peaceful transfer of power was blocked (no access to classified documents, intelligence, etc.) and an insurrection was attempted by the losing candidate.
Biden's team immediately set about to make available covid-19 shots in the arm for everyone, hygiene masks for each household, tests for those who requested them and increased ventilator production.
While there were hundreds of thousands of Americans who died unnecessarily under Trump, there were countless numbers of people who were saved by the actions of the Biden administration. Early on a bipartisan rescue aid was also approved that was a proven financial lifeline for laid-off employees, small businesses, state and municipal government services.
The majority of Americans made a good choice voting for the Biden/Harris team in 2020. Let’s get ready to do it again in 2024 because the stakes are too high for anyone to sit out this election.
David Tisdale, New Albany
Mary Lightbody was thoughtful
Re "Ohio House member Rep. Lightbody is resigning Tuesday to support family," Jan. 5: Rep. Mary Lightbody of the 4th District deserves a public thank you for her five-and-a-half years of exceptional service to her constituents.
She has been uncommonly accessible, responding to calls and e-mails, holding regular open-office hours around her district, and attending what seemed like every event in each community. She attended whether or not she had an official role to play and when she did have a role, she didn't just play her role and leave, she stayed for the entire event, socializing with her constituents.
She was extremely thorough in learning about the issues she promoted. She made a concerted effort to learn facts not just from the usual "official" sources but from the people who had lived the problems she sought to alleviate. She listened to facts — and differing viewpoints — carefully, taking notes, asking questions, suggesting actions, and offering to take actions.
More: Ohio House member Mary Lightbody announces resignation; Democrats will pick replacement
She leaves big shoes to fill and will be very much missed.
Sharon Montgomery, Gahanna
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Mike DeWine failed non-trans women with veto| Letters
