3 key moments from Riley Gaines' testimony at Senate hearing on trans rights

By Samantha Kamman, Christian Post Reporter Thursday, June 22, 2023

Former NCAA swimmer Riley Gaines countered the president of the Human Rights Campaign for denying the biological advantages of male athletes in a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing in Washington, D.C., on June 21, 2023.

Former NCAA swimmer and women’s sports advocate Riley Gaines delivered an emotional testimony Wednesday about her experience competing against a trans-identified man and the dangers of allowing men to encroach on women’s private spaces.

Gaines testified during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing titled “Protecting Pride: Defending the Civil Rights of LGBTQ+ Americans.” Matt Sharp, senior counsel with Alliance Defending Freedom and director of the Center for Legislative Advocacy, also spoke during the hearing.

Others who testified include Dr. Ximena Lopez, a pediatric endocrinologist based in Dallas, Texas; Harleigh Walker, a trans-identified teen from Alabama; and Kelley Robinson, president of the Human Rights Campaign. The hearing comes amid multiple states enacting or considering laws banning body-mutilating and irreversible procedures following the use of puberty blockers, opposite-sex hormones, and elective sex-change surgeries such as double mastectomies and castration performed on gender dysphoric youth.

Listed on the following pages are three takeaways from Gaines’ testimony:

Samantha Kamman is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: samantha.kamman@christianpost.com. Follow her on Twitter: @Samantha_Kamman