RIVERSIDE, Calif. (CITC) -- The parents of two high school girls cross country runners filed a federal civil rights complaint against their California school district Wednesday over allegations it denied the runners equal access to athletic opportunities by placing a transgender athlete on the varsity team.
Staff at Martin Luther King High School allegedly replaced one of the two girls, referred to as T.S. in the complaint, with the biologically male athlete, identified as M.L., in October. The school is part of the Riverside Unified School District.
T.S. and her teammate, K.S., claimed through their parents that the district's action violated Title IX of the 1972 Education Amendments, which guarantees equal opportunities for student-athletes.
The students also said the district restricted their freedom of expression by ordering them to remove or conceal shirts bearing the messages, "Save Girls' Sports" and "It's Common Sense. XX ≠ XY."
"We will not allow boys to take over girls' sports or let woke policies silence young women fighting for fair competition," Julianne Fleischer, an attorney for T.S. and K.S., said in a press release.
"This case is about protecting equal opportunities and the freedom to speak out -- values that should be upheld, not suppressed, in our schools," Fleisher added.
T.S. said in the complaint she lost opportunities to be recognized and recruited by colleges because she missed the chance to compete for the varsity team at a "high-profile" meet. M.L. neither satisfied many of the team's eligibility requirements for the squad nor consistently attended practices, according to the complaint.
K.S. and T.S. later wore the shirts at issue, which school officials said created a "hostile environment," the complaint notes. The officials allegedly compared the "hostility" of the messages to that communicated by wearing a swastika in front of Jewish students.
The girls said they only wanted the right to express their views on the subject and respect other people's expression of opposing perspectives.
The Riverside Unified School District did not return a request for comment from Crisis in the Classroom (CITC).