Des Moines students walk out over Iowa's new transgender girl athlete ban
Hundreds of Des Moines high school students left their desks at noon Friday in protest over a new Iowa law that prohibits transgender girl athletes from participating in female sports.
The students from Des Moines Central Academy marched along Grand Avenue between their school and the governor's mansion, less than a 10-minute walk.
The students chanted "trans rights are human rights" and "let trans kids play!"
Jessica Gogerty, the school's director, said her students had been upset about the law since it was signed by Gov. Kim Reynolds, a Republican, earlier this month.
“I think they just really needed to have their voice be heard,” Gogerty said. “I think they are very hurt by this law. Very distressed. There's been a lot of crying, and a lot of upset, a lot of anger after the law had passed.”
While the district supported the students’ right to protest, participants were marked absent for missing part of the day, she said.
Several dozen students at Des Moines' Roosevelt High School also protested the law on Friday. Jakema Levy-Hunter, a senior, was one of those students.
Levy-Hunter, who identifies non-binary and prefers gender-neutral pronouns, called the law "baffling."
"I felt I needed to participate in this protest to say ‘Kim Reynolds made a mistake,'" they said. "She made a huge mistake, actually."
Students walked out of classes for an hour today to protest the new law prohibiting trans girls from playing sports on girls’ teams. They marched in cold weather to the governor’s mansion and back a couple of times and chanted outside the school to draw attention to their cause. pic.twitter.com/VBZadhMlA9
— DMPS Central Academy (@DMPS_Academy) March 11, 2022
More: Iowa's ban on transgender girls in female sports is destined for a lawsuit, experts say.
Iowans are sharply divided on the issue, according to the results of a new Iowa Poll. Forty-six percent of Iowans favor the law, while 45% oppose it. Another 9% say they are not sure.
Reynolds and other supporters of the bill said it protects girls' from the athletic advantages for transgender girls.
Opponents of the bill say the bill is discriminatory and further marginalizes young transgender people who are likely already facing hardships.
Legal observers and LGBTQ advocates expect the law, which mirrors others passed by other Republican-controlled legislation, to end up in court.
Des Moines Register reporters Samantha Hernandez and Omar Waheed contributed.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Des Moines students protest Iowa transgender athlete ban law
