2nd Genre Project - So saying you are a woman isn't enough?

Journal Entry
March 2, 2014
So saying you are a woman isn't enough?

Women with abnormally high levels of testosterone are diagnosed with a condition known as hyperandroganism. The International Olympic Committee has a proposal on a new rule concerning sex substantiation. The IOC is considering banning women with hyperandrogenism from competing in women's sports. The IOC claims women with an unusually high level of testosterone have an unfair advantage against the other women competing. The IOC depicts this new rule as a fair compromise. Many people agree the rules should be fair and as just as possible, but I don't see how this proposal is fair. High levels of testosterone can depend on many factors: the time of day, the time of life, social status, and one's history in athletic training. If the results from the test prove hyperandrogenism is the case, then suspension should not be the answer. The woman should still be allowed to compete in any competitions before the results are pronounced. When the result  is announced, the woman's rights have been violated and her confidentiality will be breached.

There is not a law of science that states successful athletes have a higher testosterone level than less successful athletes.Testosterone will more than likely improve a person's athletic performance, but testosterone levels do not determine who will perform better in competitions. Everybody reacts to testosterone differently. The way it affects one person may not be the way it affects someone else.

For the athletic world to get a clear answer about who is qualified to compete or not, the public should take matters into their own hands and quit relying solely on scientists. A professor of physical education and kinesiology at the University of Toronto, Bruce Kidd, also a former contender in the Olympic games, believes an athlete, or anyone for that matter, has a right to privacy, identification of one's self, and integrity. "If the proclaimed human right of self-expression is to mean anything, surely it should protect the right to name one's own gender," Kidd justifiably states.

I do not see the justice or dignity in bashing other competitors based on genetics or the results of a test. To name one's own gender would spark up an even bigger argument because of the competitiveness of sports, such as guys knowing they have an advantage over women, but women should not be banned because a condition they were born with.

Jordan-young, Rebecca, and Katrina Karkazis. "You Say You're a Woman? That Should Be Enough."The New York Times. The New York Times, 16 June 2012. Web. 25 Feb. 2014.