Long Island Roller Derby League Upset That Nassau County Banned Biological Men From Women's Leagues

A roller derby league on Long Island has sued Nassau County after executive Bruce Blakeman issued an executive order banning transgender athletes from women’s sports.

Usually, stories like this follow the opposite pattern: a sports team or league sues a governing body for allowing biological men to compete in the league. But the Long Island Roller Rebels - a 20-year-old roller derby league - thinks Nassau County has overstepped by instituting this mandate. Along with the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU), the league filed a lawsuit against Blakeman for daring to protect women in sports.

"This cruel policy sends the dangerous message that trans people don’t belong in Nassau County," Amanda "Curly Fry" Urena, the league’s vice president, said in a statement earlier this month. "We hope the court sees this policy for what it is — transphobic and unjust — and makes sure Nassau County is a safe space for trans, non-binary, and gender-expansive people."

"Gender-expansive?" That’s a new one.

For those of you who may have never watched this sport (or seen Season 3, Episode 7 of "Psych"), roller derby is not for the faint of heart. Players get wildly physical, and it’s easy to see why banning transgender women (a.k.a., men) from the sport would be a good thing.

However, not everyone within the Roller Rebels league feels that way.

Lots Of People Have Voiced Disappointment With The Mandate

On Joe Biden’s recently-declared "Trans Day of Visibility" - better known as "Easter Sunday" for the somewhat reverent and mentally stable - The Associated Press released a profile story of people who are displeased with the rule. Unsurprisingly, it's full of people who identify as LGBT.

One of them was Urena, a 32-year-old who identifies as queer and said the mandate prevents people from being welcome.

"The whole point of derby has been to be this thing where people feel welcome," Urena said. "We want trans women to know that we want you to come play with us, and we’ll do our very best to keep fighting and making sure that this is a safe space for you to play."

A biological male who identifies as Caitlin Carrol and competes as "Catastrophic Danger" (these nicknames are creative) said that this mandate prevents transgender people from having a safe outlet to run to.

Bruce Blakeman (center-right, gray tie) wanted to protect women's sports. Lots of roller derby athletes are complaining about that. (Photo by James Carbone/Newsday RM via Getty Images)

"You come in here and you say, ‘I’m a trans woman. I’m a nonbinary person. I’m genderqueer.’ OK? We accept you," Carroll said. "The world is scary enough. You should have a safe place to be."

The article is full of more nonsense like this, where people blast Blakeman and the county for having common sense. Furthermore, the story only contains two minuscule paragraphs toward the very end of the lengthy story of people who support the ban. Talk about one-sided reporting.

According to the AP, the Roller Rebels have applied for permits to host practices and games within the county, but expect to be denied since they are open to transgender women competing on any of their rosters. Let’s hope Blakeman and his office don’t cave to the pressure of the Roller Rebels and the NYCLU and continue to fight for sanity.