Paula Scanlan, former teammate of trans swimmer Lia Thomas, to speak at UI on March 25
A prominent voice in Matt Walsh's documentary "What is a Woman" is hosting an event on the University of Iowa campus nearly a year after the controversial Walsh visited Iowa City.
Former University of Pennsylvania swimmer Paula Scanlan will speak at 7 p.m., Monday, March 25 the Iowa Memorial Union’s Black Box Theatre for a Young Americans for Freedom lecture and Q&A session.
Scanlan entered the spotlight as an outspoken opponent of her swim teammate, Lia Thomas. Thomas is a transgender female who became the first transgender person to win an NCAA title when she prevailed in the 500 freestyle in 2022. Thomas also won three separate Ivy League season titles that season.
More: Transgender swimmer Lia Thomas seeks CAS ruling to allow her to compete
Scanlan aims to 'protect women's spaces in sport'
Scanlan’s lecture is titled “Men Do Not Belong in Women’s Sports,” focusing on “the importance of protecting women’s spaces including sports, bathrooms, and prisons,” according to a release from the UI Young Americans.
“Scanlan will share how radical gender ideology is destroying women’s sports in addition to championing freedom and the challenges she has overcome to share this message,” the release said.
Scanlan is the offspring of a Taiwanese mother and an Irish-American father. In a piece posted to the International Women’s Forum website, Scanlan shared stories about the "discomfort" she and some of her teammates experienced after Penn allowed Thomas onto the team and into the locker room.
Scanlan said she was sexually assaulted in a bathroom when she was 16 and used swimming as a means to help her “heal emotionally.”
She told Congress in 2023 that she believed her experience was fostered by a UPenn culture that was filled with “gaslighting and fearmongering (of) women to validate the feelings of a male.”
Scanlan is now a spokesperson for the International Women’s Forum, a nonprofit formed by “conservative activist” Rosalie Silbermann and others after Clarence Thomas’ appointment to the Supreme Court in the 1990s, according to the Washington Post. The group focuses on “equity feminism.”
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Past YAF visitors have inspired protests, 'Bigot Bingo'
Walsh's appearance in 2023 was the first of several Young Americans for Freedom lectures. The screening of his controversial documentary, “What is a Woman?” drew hundreds of protesters to the Iowa Memorial Union while many others packed the large main lounge.
Some Young Americans’ guests have drawn small crowds of protesters, including appearances from North Korean defector Yeonmi Park and conservative author and lecturer Vince Everett Ellison. Though protests outside were sparse for Ellison’s lecture, a community member did organize “Bigot Bingo” and raised more than $750 for a women’s clinic in the Iowa City area.
More: UI police officers detail night of Chloe Cole protest on opening day of protester’s trial
“De-transitioned” teen Chloe Cole visited the IMU in October, which spawned protestors that allegedly clashed with police as they tried to clear the street.
A few weeks later, seven protesters — all of whom identify as transgender or non-binary — were charged with disorderly conduct and interference with official acts.
The only protester to go to trial so, Tara Dutcher, was acquitted by a 12-person jury on March 13. Five others have taken plea deals.
More: Queer community demands UI police department's 'dissolution' after Tara Dutcher acquittal
The Press-Citizen is unaware of a planned protest ahead of Scanlan's visit.
Ryan Hansen covers local government and crime for the Press-Citizen. He can be reached at rhansen@press-citizen.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @ryanhansen01.
This article originally appeared on Iowa City Press-Citizen: Paula Scanlan to speak about men in women's sports at IMU on March 25
