Powerlifter Angel Flores, like other transgender athletes, tells her story...

[Jessica_Rose]

Powerlifter Angel Flores, like other transgender athletes, tells her story in her own words

https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/nba/powerlifter-angel-flores-like-other-transgender-athletes-tells-her-story-in-her-own-words/ar-BB1kJYxN?ocid=windirect&cvid=09c2280eab5f48689dfd22c467abad23&ei=9

Story by Sammy Gibbons (29 March 2024)

Angel Flores wants people to understand something about transgender athletes. These are frightening times for them.

"All athletes need that good mental game to keep things in check," Flores, herself a multisport athlete, told USA TODAY. "I don't see how a trans athlete can have a good mental game with everything that's going on with the news, with waking up every morning and seeing another bill dropped, another law passed, another person has been persecuted, or jailed, or assaulted, or killed."

What's often missing from the discussion of transgender athletes is hearing from those athletes themselves. They are talked about, but their own words are often ignored by the mainstream media. Or what they say isn't reported.

Laws in several dozen states restrict trans athletes from participating in teams or divisions that align with their gender identities. Similar bills or regulations have been introduced in other parts of the country.

One of the main goals of supporters of these bills is to both demonize and spread misinformation about the trans community. They've identified sports as a vehicle to attack transgender people. Some cisgender athletes, in fact, have taken legal action to try and stop trans athletes from competing in various events across the country.