Georgia Governor Signs Anti-LGBTQ Law Restricting Transgender Students

[Lori Dee]

Georgia Governor Signs Anti-LGBTQ Law Restricting Transgender Students from Sports, Despite Zero Trans Athletes Participating in State
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GLAAD - April 28, 2025

On April 28, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp signed The Riley Gaines Act, effectively banning the participation of transgender student-athletes from participating in sports and from using the correct restroom and locker room that aligns with their gender.

The new law, which was championed by conservative state lawmakers as a top priority at the start of the legislative session and supported by Kemp, takes the unprecedented step of targeting transgender student-athletes despite there being a record of zero transgender athletes currently competing in the state.

On March 4, for the second time since the start of the 2025 state legislative session, over 200 LGBTQ Georgians and their allies descended on the State Capitol to share their personal stories with lawmakers and to rally against legislation aimed at stripping transgender Georgians of their humanity and the right to live and play as every other citizen.

The new law also includes vague language about "standard school medical procedures" to enforce the measure and verify a student's sex assigned at birth.

Georgia advocates tell GLAAD that anti-LGBTQ legislation like The Riley Gaines Act is a "solution in search of a problem."

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South Dakota did the same, and the total count of transgender athletes in this state was exactly one.