Man this will be an interesting thread....
I'll probably get chewed out for this, but what I am asking are genuine questions based on my understanding of those who are trans is that the brain functions opposite of the physical bodies sex. I think we all agree that trans people have no choice in how they were born and deserve every right to be treated as everyone else should, and in no way do I wish to demean those who are trans or any other sex/gender related issues that don't conform to traditional society norms.
But when it comes with sports people are divided based on their physical makeup, and even post op you can never get rid of all the male traits that have developed until that point, so wouldn't all trans women have a physical advantage? Men typically are born with larger and wider bones, a higher percentage of muscle vs fat, and different metabolisms linked to weight, thus heart strength? Likewise, wouldn't anyone born with a female body be at a disadvantage in sports due to the differences they were born with, right down to skeletal structure from birth? I am sure there are women who have larger bones and other traits which outclass that of men, but the general trend would indicate this is true.
I've seen multiple stories over the years that focus on those who were born physically as make beating other women in sports, but none regarding those who were born physically female that transitioned to male having success. While I would imagine this could be used to prove a point that it's unfair that trans women can compete in spots, I think it is also important to ask what the difference in public perception and progress there has been for trans women, compared to trans men. I can easily see why someone who transitioned to male wouldn't want to participate in male sports, given the attitude of men vs women and prevalent toxic masculinity. Thus looking at news stories is not a reliable point of data.
Given the different structure at birth, I am inclined to say it's unfair for those that are trans to compete with the opposite birth sex and the physical changes between male and female can never be fully undone. In sports there is no way to ignore this, unlike literally every other aspect of life. I also think it's unfair to exclude those who are trans from sports or tell them they are not good enough or are too problematic to participate. Perhaps competitions exclusively for trans people is something we need to consider in the future? We have competitions or those who have suffered dehabilitating injuries in life or birth in the form of the Special Olympics, so would that not be something we should one day do for those who are trans and normalize people who were born into that life.
Again, what I am asking here are genuine questions and not rhetorical, and I apologize in advance if anything in here is hurtful to others and have tried my best in explaining my thinking in a way that is respectful to all this may effect. I feel sometimes these conversations can be difficult, but the more it's talked about the more people can learn, even beyond myself.
